Chapter Eight #2
When his phone beeped, he looked over at me in surprise, “Why did you do that?” he asked.
“Give it a minute,” I said.
Less than five minutes later someone commented in the chat, Y’all look like y’all got that work in. If we are meeting tomorrow count me in.
I looked over at him and smirked and he looked back at me in awe.
“The rest will follow trust me. People just want to see someone else do it first,” I smirked at him.
He smiled and reached over and pulled me into a big hug.
“Thank you NY’Airy!” he told me as the chat began to buzz and other people began to comment on wanting to come to the next session as well.
“You are welcome! I just told the truth,” I shrugged. I looked over at him, and he was staring at me intensely, “Can I ask you something?” I blurted out before I could change my mind.
He smiled and nodded his head slowly.
“Why do you cheat on your wife? If you don’t want to be married, why not get a divorce?” I asked.
“My wife cheated on me first. She lost her first job because I came to the hospital and beat the doctor’s ass that she was fucking.
I left her and we have been separated since.
I haven’t told anyone my side of the story, not my sister or my father, because I don’t want to make her look bad.
I would rather my family think I’m a thot than know that she is the reason we are in this shit.
She won’t give me a divorce because she thinks I will change my mind.
I’m not changing my mind. I was faithful to that woman, and she betrayed my trust. I could never look at her the same.
Since we have been separated, I have been messing with other women hoping it would make her sign the divorce papers,” he smirked.
I had to pick my mouth up off the ground to keep something from flying in it.
I just knew I had him figured out, to find out that he was the victim, and he was reacting to what was done to him had caught me completely off guard.
“Wow,” I replied because I truly didn’t know what else to say.
“I know. That’s no excuse for being a terrible father, but I just want to make her hurt the way she hurt me,” he whispered. I could identify with that more than he knew.
“I’m a law clerk and I know a really great attorney that could help you petition the court to get your marriage dissolved without her signing the papers. She cheated on you and she does not have the right to hold you hostage in a marriage that you don’t want to be in anymore,” I told him angrily.
“I just don’t want to tarnish her reputation,” he replied.
“You can’t keep destroying yours to protect hers. Do you know how many members y’all may have lost yesterday because she wanted to come up there and play hurt wife? That’s not fair to your business, it’s not fair to your sister, and it’s not fair to you,” I told him honestly.
“I will take the business information for the lawyer and at least discuss some options,” he told me and I smiled at him proudly.
“You still love her?” I asked him as I picked up my Stanley cup and guzzled water down.
He thought about it for a while before replying. “I love who she was.”
I shrugged my shoulder because that was fair.
“Can I ask you something now?” he questioned. Before I could say yes, he turned to face me fully.
“You really don’t like me?” he asked sincerely and I swallowed the lump in my throat.
“I don’t know you. I know what you show at the gym and it’s going to take more than some muscles to get me to swoon like the rest of the women,” I told him honestly.
“That’s fair,” he shrugged. For the first time he didn’t look like the arrogant trainer from the gym. He looked tired and almost sad.
“You know what’s crazy?” he asked.
“What?”
“I could’ve called somebody to come over or went out and met somebody to fuck, but I didn’t want to. There was a woman on my mind that I wanted, and I knew I couldn’t have her, so I didn’t want anyone else,” he admitted. My stupid heart skipped a beat like it was possible that I was that woman.
“Well, congratulations to her,” I said sarcastically. Even though my palms had begun to sweat and I was suddenly extremely nervous.
“Right lucky her,” he looked at me long enough to make my stomach tighten but didn’t offer any more information about the mystery woman. He stood to his feet and reached out to me so he could help me up.
“Come on,” he said as he held out his hand.
“Where are we going? Are we about to do another lap around the park?” I asked him as I took his hand and let him help me up. When I made it to my feet, he was still holding my hand, and he didn’t bother to let it go.
“No, we are done with laps, let’s go to breakfast,” he said.
“No,” I told him as I pulled my hand from his and looked him stubbornly in the eyes.
“I know you hungry. Your stomach just growled. I’m starving too. I know this place near here that has some healthy options and the food tastes good,” he persisted.
“I don’t go out on dates with married men,” I told him as I thought about the woman who had taken my husband from me and caused the worst pain I had ever felt in my life.
There was no way he met her, fell for her, and married her all within six months.
They had to have been sneaking around while we were still married.
She stole Larry’s heart from me, and I was going to take it right back from her.
“We just talked about this. I told you, I’m not married, I’m separated,” he told me as he looked at me like I had forgotten what he told me less than five minutes ago.
I reached into my fanny pack and pulled out the information for the lawyer I worked for. I placed the card in his open palm and smiled at him, “A separated man is still a married man.” I grabbed my water bottle and walked away.
I looked over my shoulder, and he was standing there staring at me as I walked away.
“Great session, see you tomorrow, same time same place,” I called over my shoulder.