I thought—no, hoped—that she’d be waiting for me as usual. But she’s not. I linger in the kitchen for longer than Inormally would, waiting for her to come back from jogging. She’s been doing that a lot recently. Or maybe she went somewhere with George—the man has slowly transferred himself to her. Which I don’t mind; he has some sick tricks up his sleeves, so he also doubles as a bodyguard for my wife.
But she hasn’t come back.
I call her. Twice.
But she doesn’t respond. So I go to sleep.
In the morning, I wake up to an empty bed and her scent still lingering on the sheets. Which immediately triggers something sharp in my chest. Her avoidance. Secrecy.
So I decide to do something extreme and not go to work today. Instead, I decide to wait for her to come back.
I’m sitting in the living room, patiently waiting for her arrival. When the elevator doors chime, her voice rings through the suddenly cold space. She’s clearly talking to someone on the phone.
“No, I need Jeff to be comfortable.” A pause. “I know, but he’s very important to me. I need him to be there tonight so I can visit him anytime I want. Well.” A giggle. “At least when he feels like company. He’s so moody. Sometimes I have to wait for him forever.” An invisible hand squeezes my chest from the inside, breaking ribs one by one. “Yes, please. Yes.”
She’s so excited that she doesn’t even recognize my frozen presence while she runs to the bedroom. Granted, I’m hiding in the shadows in the corner in a perfectly placed chair, but we’ve always been attuned to each other. Always. I’ve always known when she’s in the room, and I thought she felt the same.
I don’t hear the rest of the conversation because a wave of rage envelops me in a fuzzy fog. It wraps around my mind and doesn’t let go until I’m in the elevator. Then in the car. I should have called George to drive me because driving in this state of mind is not fair to the people around me, but Itake the sports car regardless. My tongue is too tied to even talk to him. I feel betrayed. It’s something I’m used to, but not on this scale.
Is my wife having an affair? So fast? I thought we had broken the ice a long time ago. I’ve been living in a dream for the past month, for fuck’s sake. Was she playing me all this time? Or was Jeff there before me? Did she plan to getcomfortableand pay for their love nest?
Fucking hell. I didn’t know the feeling of internal pain until now. Why is it hitting me so hard? Why can’t I breathe when I’m thinking about my wife in the hands of this Jeff?
Why am I so jealous?
Why?
I let out a short exhale, and my mind sets in place. Everything does really. I’m in love with her. I’m in love with my fake wife who apparently loves Jeff.
I am fucked.
This is all I can think about while I drive myself to the office. I’ve been doing it a lot recently, enjoying the time off my phone. Early morning city streets are not so busy, and I’ve come to appreciate the sunrise. Not today. Today, I’m coming to the office much later when the streets are packed with cars and pedestrians running in front of them on red lights, aggravating my already pissed-off mood.
I stride past Martin without acknowledging him, which is a shitty move, but it beats saying something I’ll regret later. He regards me with a quirked brow and a silent salute and quickly goes back to clicking on his keyboard. This reminds me why I’ll never give him up to Noah.
I’m mulling over my newfound knowledge about my wife andJeffwhen the intercom pings with Martin’s disgusted voice.
“Your father is on the line. I can send him to hell where he belongs if you want.”
Just what I need today. He won’t leave me alone until I talk to him. Maybe he’s been sent to me to pour my frustration on him, so something good might come out of it.
“No,” I sigh. “Patch him in. Let’s get this over with.”
“Alright. I’ll have a bottle of bourbon waiting for you after the call.”
“Son,”my father’s voice booms through the speaker,“I’ve heard you found a way to trick me.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
His loud laughter etches on my nerves.“C’mon. I’ve raised you to be a conniving little bitch. Glad to see my lessons are paying off.”
I have so much to tell him, but it’s not worth it since it always falls on deaf ears. “What do you need?”
“Today we are having a ball for the old squad. You have to be there.”
“No, thank you.”
“I’m afraid, it’s not negotiable. The board will be there too. It’s your chance to prove yourself to them. Make sure that little wife of yours behaves.”
