A Memorable Weekend

Carole dried her short blond hair with a towel. Her shower had washed the grit and sweat away from the weekend’s hiking trip. Another great weekend with Jason, she mused. Deadwood Lakes. What a find. After pouring over topographical maps, her fiancé, Jason, had discovered two lakes at the end of an abandoned trail in the high country of the Cascade Mountains. Carole smiled recalling the time they had spent there. The faint trail climbed over a ridge to the two lakes below. As they topped the ridge, they came upon a black bear who, when startled, galloped away.

 What beautiful lakes and we had them all to ourselves, she recalled. Oh – and making passionate love laying among flowering lupines. We only had our boots on! Later that night, they shared a bottle of wine by campfire. If only there had been no mosquitos, she thought, frowning.

How lucky Carole felt to have found Jason. They shared so much. They were both nature lovers. Most summer weekends were spent together hiking and camping in the mountains. They both loved to cook – everything from soufflés and quiches to jams and jellies came from their kitchen. They began dating over the last year and Carole moved in to live with Jason six months ago. Back in May, Jason proposed marriage to her. Carole was more than ready to say, “Yes!”

Having now dressed, she began sorting dirty clothes from the past week before washing them. As she did so, Carole’s thoughts drifted to their upcoming wedding. Less than two weeks to go! she thought. Soon she would be pledging to spend the rest of her life with Jason, and he to her. How she loved this man! She felt lucky to have linked up with him. When she first met Jason, they both had happy, active dating lives. Their love happened suddenly. Now he was going to be all hers.

The wedding and then a ten-day honeymoon hiking on Mount Rainier. What bliss! Ten days together on The Mountain, she said to herself. Poor Jason had been working at the office late nights so he would be able to take the time off.

Carole sorted dark clothes – jeans, tee shirts, running shorts and such into one pile and whites – dress shirts, underwear, and socks into another. As she did so, something unusual caught her eye. On a leg of Jason’s white underwear was a pink smear. Carole blinked and looked again. Lipstick? No, it couldn’t be! But there it was - a pink smear by the top of his underwear. Lipstick! Was Jason having an affair? The love of her life and just two weeks before their wedding. An Affair? Carole sank to the floor with her back against the washer. Her hopes and dreams of their life together seemed to collapse around her. The betrayal! The bastard! her mind screamed as she broke into angry tears.

Carole took a deep breath and thought about what she had discovered and what it meant. Was Jason sewing his “wild oats” with one last fling before marriage? Was he having second thoughts about their commitment to one another? Or did this mean that he would continue to have affairs after their wedding, she wondered.

Well, it’s better to learn this now than after marriage, she thought. Lack of fidelity was a deal-breaker for Carole. She needed to get to the bottom of this – and Right Now.

Carole found Jason in the kitchen, preparing a quick dinner. She came up to him and said, “Take a break. I need to talk to you.”

Jason looked at her, a bit annoyed, and replied, “Can’t it wait until I finish making dinner?”

“No, it can’t”, Carole snapped. “We need to talk Right Now!”

With a look of surprise and somewhat perplexed, Jason washed and dried his hands and then followed her into the living room. Facing her, he said, “OK, what is so important?”

With tears in her eyes, Carole said “Well, while I was sorting clothes for the wash, I found pink lipstick smeared on a leg of your white underwear. I want an explanation.”

“What?” he began laughing. “You’re crazy!”

That son of a bitch! Carole thought angrily. Laughing to cover his tracks. Not man enough to admit his guilt. “No, I am not crazy,” she said. “There is pink lipstick on your underwear. Are you having an affair? Tell me.”

“No, I am not having an affair!” he said. “There is no way there is pink lipstick on my shorts.”

“But There Is pink lipstick on your shorts”, Carole hissed. “Come with me and I will show you.”

Jason followed her into the laundry room.

“Here it is, Jason”, she said. “Explain this to me” and she held up the underwear with a pink smear on one leg.

“Let me see that”, said Jason reaching for the shorts and examining them thoughtfully. Puzzled, he thought, This can’t be lipstick. Then it dawned on him, “Oh, Sweetheart! This isn’t lipstick. Remember those annoying mosquitoes this weekend at the lakes? This is just pink Caladryl lotion that I put on those itchy mosquito bites on my leg. Some of it must have rubbed off on my shorts.”

Carole grabbed the shorts back and examined them again. Stunned, it all became clear to her. Of course, it was a stain from the Caladryl lotion, she realized. Dropping the shorts, Carole threw her arms around Jason and sobbed with relief. “Oh, Jason!” she said. “How could I have doubted you? I am so, so sorry Sweetheart.”

Jason held her tightly and replied, “Carole – you are the only woman for me. I will Never be unfaithful to you.”

“I - I know”, said Carole as she wiped away her tears. “It’s just Caladryl!”

They looked at one another and then broke into hearty laughter. It was just Caladryl!