"I recall in the heat of my W's A she had a similar tone, telling me OM was a "'Good and decent man'"
Cali, they very much care about being perceived as "good and decent," don't they? The night two weeks after BD when I called the OW from my W's phone (ummm... I had a bit of liquid courage and we had a huge fight that led to my faux pas), the OW just listened to me rage and kept saying in this meek little voice over and over, "I'm not a bad person. I'm not a bad person. I'm not a bad person."
Me thinks she doth protest too much...
Me: 46 Her: 41 M: 5.5 yrs / S: 20, 18 3/26 W and I meet OW BD: 5/2/2015, she takes off ring W goes to stay with OW 6/26 NC: 9/5 Both moved out: 10/16 I take off my ring and feel... healed: 10/19