Dear Prudie,
Almost two years ago, I cheated on my husband once with a co-worker. As a result, I quit my job and never again went back into the store where I worked. Both of these actions were at the request of my husband after he found out. There were contributing situations that led me to cheat, but I understand that there’s no excuse. My husband forgave me, and our relationship improved greatly. However, I was extremely close with my (female) boss and continued to speak to her. My husband told me more than once that he did not like that I still spoke to her, because whenever he heard her name, he was reminded of a hurtful situation. About nine months ago, after ending a conversation with my friend rather abruptly because my husband came home from work, I decided that, to prevent another roadblock in my marriage, I would not speak to my friend anymore. She agreed, even though she didn’t think it was right that my husband was uncomfortable about us speaking, especially since she had severely reprimanded me for what I had done. One of the worst days of my life was the day I said goodbye to her; I wanted so badly to continue our friendship. Do you think I should ask my husband if I can speak to her again?

—Missing My Friend

Dear Missing,
Is one of the contributing situations that led to your cheating the fact that your husband is a controlling, emotional bully? Requesting that you quit your job on the spot is extreme, but insisting that you end a friendship with your female boss—who disapproved of your behavior!—is inexplicable. What’s next?