Dear Emily,

I had a one-night stand with a married man recently. If the wife finds out and confronts me, should I deny or admit it?

Ambivalent

Went there, did that. Now you’re in a moral quandary and asking the wind, should you admit it or not?

It is said that, no matter how thin you slice an apple, there will always be two sides to it. If the wife is able to follow your scent and confronts you—but keeps her marriage together despite the huge crack you had a hand in creating—she’d know in her heart that you’re lying with a straight face without even batting an eyelash.

If she does leave him after you’ve confessed and unburdened your guilt, your confession would have all been for naught as you’ve already broken up the family anyway. Either way, “s–t happened,” as Forrest Gump said.

The court of public opinion and its moralizers will certainly rebuke your character either way. Everyone suddenly becomes pure as the driven snow—the holier-than-thous out of the woodwork and the stone-throwers all set with their war ornaments.

Nothing feels more liberating than catching somebody else doing something that is so tempting to do—but which you couldn’t do.

No use tossing, turning and pulling your hair when the perceived trouble hasn’t even appeared on the radar yet. Cross the bridge when you get there. Remember, “There is a season… and a time for every purpose.”

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