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didn’t know Zack and the kids were out of town for the weekend. That changes things a bit.”
    “Yeah, well. I guess you are starting to fill in the blanks, then.”
    “Are you serious? So the whole kissing thing in the hotel lobby was made up?”
    “No, that part was true!” I felt my stomach drop as Maria went on. “It just wasn’t the end of the story. We, uh . . . we might have ended up in his hotel room.” I could almost see her bracing for my reaction.
    “Shut up!”
    “Yeah, well.”
    “Come on! Now you have to be messing with me!” My head spun with this new info rmation.
    “I would never— could never—make something like this up! I swear!”
    I took a deep breath. “So wait. In other words, you went out, got drunk, made out in the lobby, and then went up to his hotel room and had sex with him?”
    “That’s it in a nutshell.” Maria sighed.
    “Oh my God, for real? How? Where was his wife?”
    “Enrique was here on business. She was at home with their kids.”
    “Oh my God! Oh my God, Maria!”
    “I know! Can you believe it?” Maria sounded more excited than anything else, and I couldn’t detect a trace of guilt in her voice.
    “No, I honestly can’t. I mean, I guess I can believe it. Holy shit. Holy, holy, shit! So… how was it?”
    “It was amazing!” Maria was clearly giddy.
    “Have you been in touch since?”
    “Yeah.” Maria giggled, sounding more girlish than I could remember her sounding in a long time. “He texted me and said he had a great time too! He signed it ‘xoxo’!”
    “Wow. That’s all I can say. I think I’m in shock. I thought the make-out session in the h otel lobby was a big deal! You are officially the first person I know who’s having an affair!”
    “That may not be true,” Maria said in a singsong voice. “It’s possible I’m just the only one who has told you!”
    “Good point. So now what?”
    “Not sure,” Maria pondered. “Only time will tell, I guess.”
    “Crap, Maria! This is a big deal!”
    “Oh, I know. I am so glad I told you.” Maria’s voice brightened a bit, sounding a little more relaxed. “Seriously, Liz, I felt horrible keeping it inside. You’re the only one I am going to tell, okay? I needed to tell someone, and I know I can trust you and that you won’t judge me.”
    “Of course you can trust me!” A long moment went by while I thought about what to say. Maria was one of my best friends, and there was only one thing I could say. “You can trust me. And I won’t judge you.”
    “Thank you!” gushed Maria, sounding relieved and cheerful again. “Love you, Liz. Thanks again!”
    “Sure.” I couldn’t wait to get off the phone and sort through my feelings.
    “Hey, I gotta run. The baby is calling! I’ll talk to you soon!”
    “Okay, good night.”
    I couldn’t believe Maria was having an affair! Do you even call it an affair after one time? Now what? They were both married. They lived over an hour apart. They had kids. What was she thinking?
    I was feeling super guilty. I wasn’t the one in bed with Maria, but still, my telling her about talking to Enrique on Facebook may have been the catalyst for all of this. I may have started something that could change their lives forever. And if my hunch was right, this was only going to get more complicated.
    I couldn’t believe any of this was happening. I mean, I’ve seen enough episodes of Ge neral Hospital and Grey’s Anatomy to know people cheat all the time, but no one I knew personally was in the throes of a steamy affair—or so I thought. Maria had made me promise that I wouldn’t judge her, and I told her—and myself—I’d try. But I despised infidelity. My college sweetheart, Nicholas, had cheated on me, and I didn’t wish that pain on anyone. Not Zack or anyone else.
    To me, being unfaithful was something selfish and cowardly. Yes, cheating was for sel fish cowards. If someone’s not happy in a relationship, why can’t they just say so? Why