My husband proposed that my friend and I swap husbands for a week — I thought he was joking until I discovered she was actually willing to do it, so I agreed and decided to teach them both a lesson

Had I missed something?

Was he having an affair?

Was this his strange way of asking permission to cheat?

Or had he simply stopped respecting me?

By morning, my shock had turned into suspicion.

I waited until Sean left for work, then called Nancy.

She answered after the third ring.

“Hey, girl! What’s going on?”

I took a deep breath.

“Did Sean talk to Alex about us swapping partners for a week?”

Silence.

Not the ordinary silence of someone trying to understand a strange question.

This was the silence of someone who had just been caught off guard.

Finally, Nancy said, “Oh. He told you?”

My stomach tightened.

“He told me what, exactly?”

She laughed nervously.

“Don’t make it sound so dramatic, Vanessa.”

“How long have you known about this?”

Another pause.

“Alex and Sean mentioned it a few days ago.”

“A few days ago?”

“Yes.”

“And you thought it was a good idea?”