Two weeks later... Debbie and I were relaxing one night on the patio. I had just served her an espresso and she lit a Montecristo Number 2 with her new Zippo lighter. After a deep drag, she said to me, "Thank you, dear, the dinner was wonderful tonight."...

Debbie and I used to be a typical suburban couple. We had been married for just over a year after having lived together for two years. We had no kids yet, and were anxious to start a family soon in our new home. We were conventional and, I thought, pretty...