Help! Advice needed

[catherine at cator-manor.demon.co.uk]

This is seriously off-topic, but I am desperate...
An old friend of mine is in town - he lives in the States so I don't 
see him very often.  He has recently split up from his wife.  I knew 
him first (in fact, he is an old boyfriend) but I love his wife to 
pieces and know that one of the reasons they split is the appalling 
way he treated her - which I've witnessed first hand.  My feelings 
towards him changed radically when I saw the way he behaved with her, 
and I just know that he is going to spend the next few days spilling 
his guts out about everything, which I think I am going to find hard 
to handle - not least because I want to tell him what I really 
think.  What do I do???  My husband and friends are no help, because 
their advice is to avoid seeing him, but I really don't feel that I 
can do that, as his trip was arranged months ago and I can't suddenly 
come up with lame excuses at this stage.

If anyone has any suggestions I would appreciate it.  Feel free to 
post off-list.

Catherine