My wife, Kim, and I have been friends with Dawn and Steve for several years. They are a fun couple and we try to get together at least once a month. I thought we knew them fairly well, but our last get‑together showed a side of their marriage that we hadn't seen before. Dawn is an extremely attractive blond, vivacious, intelligent, and with a bubbling personality. Steve, on the other hand, is much more reserved and inclin...

I don't understand my wife. She's a housewife and seems to be proud of that fact. When we decided to have kids, she felt it would be in their best interests if she stayed home to raise them. I didn't have any problem with that and I think it's worked out great and the kids have benefitted greatly from having their mom available to nurture and supervise their upbringing. It's also been nice to have meals ready when I get h...

It was her birthday. We spent the night celebrating with a few of her friends, toasting and chiding, but all in fun. At about 10:00 pm, her friends left and we were all alone. She was my best friend. She'd celebrated this occasion forty‑nine times previously and I had been lucky enough to participate in about thirty of them. But tonight was special, because she was special. After a few more drinks and some idle conversati...