Wing woman or...?

What would you do if your boyfriend travelled to another country to attend a wedding? Sounds pretty innocent... Everyone gets invited to weddings, especially if you have a large extended family and your countless cousins start getting married almost every month.

Now what would happen if you asked him who he was going with and he'd uncomfortably say he hadn't thought about it yet... Fishy, right?

So you start to dig deeper and he confesses he's asked his friend Salma to come. And another friend as well. Then it becomes clear that only Salma is coming. He explains that he doesn't want to go alone and he doesn't know many single friends in town any more and that she is his "wing woman", someone to go out with. Just a friend.

To be clear, as trustful as I am, one thought comes to mind - if a guy has no interest in a girl, he doesn't bring her anywhere. What also comes to mind is why lie if you are only inviting her as a friend? He said he lied because he didn't want to have an argument knowing how sensitive I was... To me that sounds "guilty as charged".

Or could it be that he had no interest in her other than company for a wedding?

A strange affair

This story is a caution to women everywhere.

About a year ago, I began to have an affair. It wasn't too intense at first. We would see each other during work days but would never dare to be together in the evenings or on weekends.

As unusual as it may seem, I met my fling in the mall. I found him to be rather dull and somewhat square in nature. He didn't say much either, though I quickly observed that we were good together. I had always liked to get a rise out of people by pushing their buttons and he was a willing and responsive participant.

And while I was feeling guilty of the new arrangement, I accepted it. What else could I do? But as weeks crept into months, I started to make him take a more active role in my day-to-day life and even my friends started to resent him.

Whether it be running errands, watching television or eating dinner, he was omnipresent. It was as though he was joined to my hip.

My friends attempted many times to talk to me about it but I no longer had their ear — only he did. If we were at a large gathering of any kind, they needed only look to a quiet corner and find us together — he pressed tight to my ear, whispering sweet nothings; me gently touching him, listening attentively.

I've now come to the painful conclusion that there is little hope that I will end the affair anytime soon. But I don't want other women to have to go through this nightmare, so I implore you to heed the following advice:

If a store clerk, friend, boss, relative or co-worker ever offers to introduce you to a man named Mr. BlackBerry, firmly say no!

** Adaptation from the story by Rose Cairney "That's life: a strange affair" published in Gulf News on May 1, 2010, http://gulfnews.com/life-style/people/that-s-life-a-strange-affair-1.620031

Back with your ex?

Catherine is a self-sufficient mother of one. She is a total workaholic. She dumped her partner while she was pregnant because she couldn't take his rudeness and moody attitude any more. Her cute 5 year-old girl now commutes to Qatar to see her dad from time to time.

Catherine struggled to find a new partner in Dubai over these years. But last week, out of the blue, her ex Jacques had asked her to try it together again. She went to Qatar for the weekend and it felt so nice to play with their girl together as a family.

However, she can't help but wonder: what if their newly discovered romance won't last again?

Gaydar

What do you do when you discover that your husband's best friend is gay and that your husband spends every free minute with him?

Jessica is Sonja's friend and a former colleague at one of the well-known international banks. Three kids later she just discovered a text message from her husband's best friend Tom inviting her husband for a swim at his private pool. Tom is gay.

Jessica has lost her sleep and can't help but wonder: is this a sign her husband could be secretly gay?

Would a straight guy spend so much time with another guy knowing he is gay? Would a straight guy go swimming with his gay friend at a private pool? Didn't think so...

Should gays be allowed to con women into marriage and kids like that??