Shock and disbelief were the initial emotions that ran through Craig Johnson as he walked back to his car from the golf course. He had caught his wife cheating with golf pro Bill Haley. (Episode 19, “The Gossip” ) There was no doubt about what was going on in the storage shed. Craig sat silently in the car, leaning over the steering wheel, staring at the early morning dew that had formed on the windshield. Part of him wanted to go back to the shed and thrash the man who had seduced his wife. Another part of him wanted to walk back and confront the woman who had cheated on him. He made the right decision by driving back to the house, showering and shaving, and heading for the office.

It wasn’t a good day to be a patient in the dental office of Craig Johnson, DDS. His mind wasn’t on his dentistry, yet he managed to struggle through the day. After work he would go home to his daughter Megan, to his son, Ethan, and to his wife, Susan, with whom his relationship would never be the same. He vowed not to discuss the situation with Susan in the presence of the children. They would have to be out of the house when he confronted his wife. When he entered the house, Susan came to the front door, greeted him, and gave him a kiss. His skin crawled at the hypocrisy of it all. After dinner he spent some time helping his kids with their homework and told Susan he had some business to attend to at the office. He returned late, crawling into bed without disturbing Susan’s sleep. He was boiling inside, but this was not the time for an argument.

Friday was a bit better at the office. Most of the day Craig kept his mind on his dentistry rather than on the adultery. Megan and Ethan were going to spend the night with their aunt Betty, Susan’s sister. Susan had nothing planned for the evening and Craig wished he hadn’t. During dinner Craig told Susan what had happened at the golf course. She cried. He didn’t need an admission of guilt because it was implied by her reaction. He asked her how long this had been going on and she told him that it had been over a year. Craig felt like a dummy. How could he have not known about this for a year? She asked him if he was going to move out of the house. He replied, “No, Susan, I’m not moving out of the house and neither are the children. You are moving out of the house.” She pleaded with him not to kick her out. She told him that the children needed her. “You wanted to fool around,” said Craig, “Go away from here with your new man and find an apartment.”

Susan was in a panic. She drove away in her car. When she got to the end of the block she stopped the car and called Bill Haley on her cell phone, tearfully telling him what had happened. Bill was displeased. He didn’t want any problems. The disclosure of this affair might jeopardize his position at the Country Club. He didn’t want a wife. He didn’t want children. He didn’t want complications. He told Susan that she shouldn’t come to his apartment that evening. It would only make matters worse. She cried again.

Susan went back to the house. She packed a small suitcase and left. All of a sudden the pleasures of the handsome golf pro didn’t seem worth the price. She would be shunned by her friends, disgraced in the eyes of her parents and children, and face the loss of the substantial income that she shared with her husband. This would be a long night for Susan. There would be no king sized bed with flat screen TV, no luxurious living room with 60-inch plasma HDTV and stereo home theatre, no fancy kitchen with granite countertops in which to grab a midnight snack. This would be a sleepless night spent alone in the confines of a small non-smoking room at the Hubbard Super 8 motel.