"It's a new year, Greg. It's time for cleaning house. And the last thing either of us needs is to get involved with people who are clearly wrong for us. I'm tellin' you -- I get major weird vibes from this guy, Steve. Trust me, stay away."

Of course, everything I was sayin' to Greg was goin' in one ear and out the other. I knew Greg always did as he liked. It was just his make up to not pay attention to good advice. And just like I told him months ago that to try anything beyond friendship with Mike was a dead end street -- it took Greg getting popped in the face by the guy to realize maybe I'd been right. But in my heart, I knew Greg wouldn't listen to me. Man, when he gets his sights set on someone -- look out. And now he was on this kid Steve. What did we know about him? Nothin'.

But when I told Greg about staying away from those people who may not be "good" for us... well, of course I was really talkin' to myself about Mark. He represented my youth in so many ways-- Atlanta, college, and experimenting with the matters of love and lust. He really had no place in my life now because I was committed once again to making things work with Eric.

So -- where did Mark Fitzgerald fit into all of this?

Simple.

He didn't.

*****

"Mark... you have to know it. As much as I know it, you have to see that this will lead to nothing. I am happily married to Eric. And you should be pursuing a relationship with someone who is available to you. You're an amazing man, Mark. You're smart and kind and generous and incredibly handsome, Mark. You know that -- but I just can't see you for a while. Probably because of all those things. I hope you understand this, and someday we'll be able to be friends."

Of course he understood. He cried. He wished he'd never broken my heart in college. He begged me to forgive him and I did. Of course I did. But in the end -- we both agreed -- no contact for a while. Mark wanted me to pursue the lawsuit against Royal Catering -- he offered to refer me to a good attorney, but I told him that was a dead issue. No lawsuits. He acquiesced.

And then he stood up and walked out of the restaurant.

Mark Fitzgerald was gone.

I breathed an enormous sigh of relief. I knew we'd see each other again, probably not for a very long time, but we'd be able to work through this and someday we'd laugh about how much we loved each other.

I felt amazing.

It was without question the right thing to do. My sights were set, once again on a happy marriage that combined trust, lust, and love -- though not in that order.

Eric Lewis -- here I come again. Ready or not.