In My Mind's Eye: Keys to the Heart

Wifey’s Story

Ah, Valentine’s Day; the most love-filled day of the year. Wifey loves Vals day—except that Hubby does the same thing every year. Every year, he gives her one of those corny red gift baskets with cheap chocolates and bears. She has to give him credit though; last year he brought home a pink basket. :/ Granted they enjoy a fabulous dinner together each year, somehow she wishes that he’d spice it up a little.

Well, in my mind's eye, this is how it really went down:

On the 14th, an anonymous vase of fresh roses are delivered to the office. The administrative assistant brings them to Wifey’s suite as all her office girlfriends look on. She reads the note attached:

Uncharted beauty, unexplored charm

Oh for the chance to have you on my arm

I’d like to cherish you and consider this

I want you, I need you; to have you is bliss

-A Secret Admirer

“Aww, hubby is so sweet! What could have gotten into him to do something so special? She skips through the office all day. She can’t wait to get home and cover him with kisses!” As she enters the car and closes her door, she finds a miniature box of premium chocolates on the passenger seat! She deduces that she must have left the door open somehow. As she drives off she wonders if she could actually have a secret admirer. Could it be someone at work or one of their contractors? She gets home and gets the mail. She enters the house sorting through the mail when she comes across an envelope addressed to her. It’s shaped like a wedding invitation or something. She opens it. It’s a card entitled “Come away with me...”. She opens it further and read instructions to meet the secret admirer at a nearby 5-star hotel. He wants her to be there at 8:00pm.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, honey,” Hubby cheers, breaking her thoughts. She jumps and guiltily responds: “Oh. Thank you, baby”. He hands her a blue gift basket. She looks at him with scrutiny…can it be? Nah…

She heads to their room, her mind racing. This “secret admirer” wants her to meet him! Who on earth could it be? Meet him at a hotel?

“Honey, let’s have our dinner.”

“Coming!”

7:00pm-Wifey gets their routine dinner together, on edge all the while.

7:20pm-She hardly eats dinner, lost in her thoughts.

7:30pm-“Honey, I think I’m going to go out to get a few things from the store.”

Hubby looks at her for a few seconds then says “Okay.”

Wifey goes in her room, starts to pack a bag with her little black dress and pearls when she halts. She can’t believe herself. It’s a really, really great feeling to know that someone adores her, but this is crazy. She can’t encourage these feelings—this is the kind of thing that leads to emotional infidelity or even worse (as she considers what could have happened). Things might be rough at home, but she loves hubby and cannot give in to the urge to accept these offers. She heads out in defeat and tells Hubby that she’s not going anymore and that she’s going to bed instead.

While laying in bed confirming her resolve to herself, Hubby comes in. He lays done behind her and dangles a key in front of her face. “Happy Valentine’s Day!” Wifey jumps up and throws a pillow at him. In passionate disbelief she jumps on him covering him with those kisses. Hubby says “Come on, honey. Let’s go. We’ve got the luxury suite.”

Hubby’s Story

He doesn’t have any ideas. Every time he asks her what she wants, she asks him to surprise her, insisting that if she told him what to do, it wouldn’t be romantic anymore. So he goes to the gift store across the street from his office every year, and does the dinner thing like in the movies. She always seems to like it…well, sort of.

Well, in my mind's eye, this is how it really went down:

Hubby takes the day off. He goes to Wifey’s job and gives a kid a buck to deliver a gorgeous vase of roses to her office with a note he whipped up (it took forever to write). Next, he uses his spare key to open her car door and places a box of premium chocolates on the passenger seat. Two days ago he made reservations at a 5-star hotel for the luxury suite, equipped with a king-sized bed, a Jacuzzi and even a microwave and refrigerator! He mailed a fancy card out to her yesterday. And of course he got the predictable gift basket to heighten the plot. Now it was just left for him to see her reaction at home.

Wifey gets home and sees the card. Surprisingly, she gets really into it and obviously felt guilty when he presented her with the usual gifts. Hubby thought that she would look past the disguise and suspect that he had done all those fabulous things for her. Rather, she appears fidgety and on edge. Could she really think that those things were from someone else? Was there someone else??? She went to the room and stayed longer than usual. While making and sharing dinner she was so deep in her thoughts. And then the unthinkable happened; she says she wants to go out. What?!? It was 7:30pm, just enough time to make it to the hotel by 8:00pm. He couldn’t believe this. She really thought that some mysterious (or not so mysterious) guy was waiting for her at the hotel so that he could give her the time of her life. As she headed to the room, his heart broke. He knew it had been rough but had it come to this?

Then she came out and rather than being dressed, she was in her night clothes ready for bed. Appearing sad, she stated that she decided to stay home. When she closed the door, Hubby rejoiced in his heart. She was truly stronger than he had given her credit. He reprimanded himself for being so unromantic that Wifey couldn’t even phantom him doing anything like this. He gets the hotel key, sneaks into the room and dangles it in front of her face revealing the adventure of the whole day. As they hugged each other tightly he said “I love you so much baby. Thank you for choosing me over a mystery. Now, come away with me…”