The Bridge

by Richard Gerald

An ordinary bridge in the Adirondacks but it divided a good family man’s life into the before and the after. Invited for a holiday weekend with the boss Lyle and his wife cross the bridge but can they cross back.

37 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 6, 2017

Reviews

[Hank · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hell Hath No Fury Like…..

A short but intriguing story about a wronged husband’s acts of revenge and retaliation.

After sixteen years of marriage his wife bluntly tells him she is going to sleep with his boss and he just needs to accept it. She says that after the weekend is over they will go home and go back to normal.
. (ah…nope, not gonna happen bitch)

It all happens at a retreat in the mountains which is accessible by one road over one bridge. Well, he destroys the bridge and all their phones leaving his wife, boss and two other couples, also participating in infidelity, stranded for days.

Oh, he also deals with the boss’s business on his return to town.

Good writing with adequate setup.

[Steve Naylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating 4.0 stars

This was a well rounded cheating story. What does well rounded mean? No clue, just didn't know how else to describe it. I guess I mean it was trying to be somewhat realistic? Some of these stories focus on the revenge aspect, others the betrayal aspect. Some focus on what the woman feels while cheating and her justification. This had a little bit of everything. MC has been married for 16 years. His wife has always been heavier until a few years ago when she got in great shape after running marathons. He has a new younger boss. One of those alpha young men who seem very impressive but are not very attention to detail oriented. Problems started at the christmas party when his boss and his wife got drunk and kissed under the mistletoe. The Mc just ignored this and never spoke about it. Now he and his wife are invited to a weekend getaway with the boss and some of his friends. When he gets there he notices something feels off. The guys are friends of his boss but the women are all married or engaged to other people and are just there for fun. The wife and the boss get really close and try to get alone time together. He catches them kissing each other but doesn't say anything. She later comes to him and tells him that she is going to be sleeping with the boss that night. She deserves this. She deserves to have fun after everything she has been through. It is no big deal. After this weekend she will be back being a loving wife. She doesn't ask permission, just tells him it is going to happen. There is apparently a "fixer" there to prevent any problems from happening. This person told him to just let things play out and he will likely get a good bonus at work. He waits and waits. When everyone is asleep he sneaks out and takes the car. There is only one way into this area and that is the one small bridge. He lights it on fire and heads back to town. It is a holiday weekend. Both his wife and boss call him trying to find out what happened. He goes to the office and moves money from the active account to the backup account. He doesn't steal anything but he does make it so there will be some problems for the business. The boss can't get back either. He then resigns and calls a lawyer. His boss doesn't get the problem fixed for a couple of weeks which caused him to have to sell the business. The wife is getting divorced. She explains at they end why she did what she did.

I can see both sides. Her cheating was selfish. Cheating always is. She only thought about herself and not once did she think about how her husband would feel. In her defense though the husband never once told her no. Never once set any boundaries. Most people wouldn't need those boundaries. It was interesting to hear what she said about the boss as well. She was happy that the alpha man wanted her. She got a lot of attention from men but never from someone of that caliber. Her husband asked her how he was supposed to just get on with everything after he heard her moaning and screaming in pleasure when she was with his boss. She responded that it was all fake. She just wanted to make it good for him. She never acted that way in 16 years and he should know she is not like that. From her point of view I bet that seemed reasonable. From his point of view it came across as she will do anything to make this other person like her but won't do any of that for me, the person she states she loves. The only thing I think the guy did wrong was not set boundaries early on. He has the right of it that he can't control her actions. If she wanted to cheat she was going to cheat. By standing around and not saying anything it could of come across as his permission. All he needed to do was make one statement. "If you do this it will change everything between us" or "doing this is going to hurt me, are you okay with that?. She wouldn't have been able to claim that she didn't know after the fact. She was in this fantasy world where she thought everything would have worked out. He should have given her a dose of reality. If she chose not to accept that, it is on her. So this is an 80/20 scenario. She is 80% to blame. He is 20%. If you watch someone drunk get into a car and they have an accident are you responsible? No but a little. If you try to take their keys and they leave anyway I would say no. If you see your wife having behavior that could lead her to make some bad choices are you responsible? Again no but a little. If you mention how these things look and what the repercussions would be if things progress then no. Overall this was a good story.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very good read. Though the author could have easily made this a hotwife story (even midway through the book, it could have turned that way), it isn't. Also, don't expect explicit sexual scenes. Without giving too much away, it's more of a cause and effect story....what happens at the lodge and how the husband deals with the situation.

[BobbyH · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was just what I needed to read, especially after reading books about humiliated, submissive husbands with no backbone! Wish more writers in the hotwife/ cuckold vane would include some degree of fight back. A very enjoyable book , right up my alley!!

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read rated on my short story scale. The story is well written and edited, which would normally garner a higher rating from me. But the story is pretty linear with little communication between characters, particularly husband and wife.

We do read about the husband and wife struggling to build a life together, but it’s more by explanation than lived experience. We also hear a lot more about husband Lyle’s jobs than his relationship with his wife and kids. And until the end, we really hear nothing about or from wife Diane.

Even the “solution”, if I can call it that, Lyle comes up with for his family doesn’t seem to serve anyone, especially husband Lyle and his kids.

This book ends with: … “That’s a good question, but I have no answer to it.” and “We must live for our future.” One would think after 9 months, Lyle could be more insightful, and other than going back to his old job with his old partner, not a moment was spent on his future, or that of his family and kids. Did Lyle “show them” - he sure did. But what does he have to show for it? In this book, nothing; because to my mind, existence is not enough.

All in, an Ok read - 3 Stars. I tried to chin myself to 4 based on the writing and editing, but I just can’t get there.

I did appreciate in Timothy’s review his comment on class in the USA.

I also reviewed a similar book - Chambers Island by Richard Brown or Dakota Stone (who the author is seems confusing?). That book had far more depth, intrigue and introspection to it. The couple communicated and miscommunicated, as husbands and wives do. There was some analysis of the miscommunication, and the subtleties thereof, and some illumination therefrom. This book had none of that.

[John Light · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another very satisfying actions-have-consequences tale. So much more comforting to read than the plethora of the unrealistic hot wife cuckold crap that is being spewed out by feminized authors and / or frustrated and angry women.
A little short, but a professionally scripted product.

[DP · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book, well done Rick. Love the symbolism laced throughout the pages. Hopefully, the authors continue to write.

[Timothy Herda · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of his best stories. Remarkable in its commentary of class mentality as well as his usually great character driven story lines. It is always a pleasure to read a story by Richard Gerald.

[Paps · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was interesting to see MC reaction to what happened, altough I do have to wonder why did he sty back so long? Perhaps a futility of though.

[Ozzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Very Familiar Story

I enjoyed this story this time, just like when I first read it. Sorry for the sarcasm but it is nearly identical to Chambers Island: A Story of Cheating And Revenge by Richard Brown. I wonder which is the original and which is the copy.

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great story

This is a great, well-written story. I've read it multiple times. But why change the name of the wife from Gloria to Diane?