Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
Lorelei was surprised to find her ex-husband, Mark, parked in her drive when she returned. He was supposed to have their six-year-old daughter for the next week. She would’ve assumed he was bringing Lucy home early, but she didn’t see their child in the car.
What was going on?
Steeling herself for what she might encounter, she got out of her Jetta. He vacillated between berating her for her lack of forgiveness for what he deemed “one mistake” and pleading with her to reunite their family, despite the fact that he was currently with someone else.
She forced a smile, hoping a congenial response would influence the tone of the conversation.
Their split had been so acrimonious. She was finished fighting with him, wanted nothing more than to put it all behind her and move on.
He was the one who wouldn’t let go, which was pretty ironic considering the reason for their divorce.
“Hello, what are you doing here?” she asked.
“I need to talk to you,” he replied, acting as though it was important.
She peered around at his Explorer. Sure enough, he was alone. “Is Lucy okay?”
“She’s fine.”
“Where is she?”
“Francine took her and Leila swimming at a friend’s house.”
Leila was the sixteen-month-old daughter he’d had with Francine. She was a beautiful baby, but Lorelei had a difficult time looking at her. Francine had been her best friend before she had an affair with Mark and wound up pregnant.
Did Francine even know Mark was here?
Lorelei doubted it. She would not be happy to learn she was babysitting both kids while he was visiting his ex.
But Lorelei felt no loyalty to Francine. They were no longer friends. So she wasn’t going to argue or question him. “Okay.”
He gestured at the house. “Can we go inside?”
Her mind raced for an excuse to stay out in the yard.
She didn’t want to be alone with him. The last time he’d had an opportunity like this, he’d pressed her up against a wall and kissed her.
He’d been trying to remind her of what they’d once had, but she’d felt nothing other than a mild revulsion.
Ever since she’d met Finn Hatch, who’d rented the cabin next to the one where they were staying that summer in Tahoe, she hadn’t been able to get excited about anyone else.
He was the new standard by whom she measured all men.
“Actually, I don’t have more than a couple of minutes.
I was just stopping by to grab my checkbook.
The only time I use it is when I get my hair done, so I forgot to take it with me when I left this morning. ”
The way she’d shored up her statement with so much detail was a dead giveaway that she wasn’t being truthful. Besides, she’d just had her hair done. But she curled her fingernails into her palms and hoped he’d buy it.
He seemed frustrated that they couldn’t have more time and more privacy, but he didn’t seem to suspect her of lying. “It won’t take long,” he said.
She was tired of being cornered by him, so she risked pushing back, even though she’d been doing her best, for Lucy’s sake, to keep things calm and positive between them.
Her efforts were probably to blame for why he was suddenly trying again.
He thought he might have another chance—but he didn’t.
“Just tell me now. I’m in a hurry,” she reiterated.
He sighed. “I want to talk to you about Lucy.”
“What about her?”
“I think the divorce is taking a big toll on her. She’s not the same.”
He’d been coming up with more and more of this type of thing lately, and, while Lorelei was worried about how the divorce was affecting their daughter, the concerns he expressed were engineered to manipulate her into coming back to him. “What do you mean? In what way?”
“She started crying last night when I was putting her to bed.”
“Because…”
“She wants her parents to be together again. She doesn’t like having to split her life between your house and mine.”
“What about Leila?” she asked. “Won’t your other child want the same?”
“Leila’s too young to know any different.”
“And Francine?”
“Come on, Lorelei. I’ve told you she drives me crazy. You’re the only one I’ve ever wanted.”
“That couldn’t have been how you felt when you were sleeping with her, or it would never have happened.”
“We’ve been over that,” he said in exasperation. “I didn’t mean to…to stray. I just got confused, made a mistake. Anyone can make a mistake.”
He was right in one regard. They had been over this, and she didn’t understand why they had to go over it again.
She made a show of checking her phone. “I’m afraid I can’t talk about this today.”
“But you’ll consider it?” He stepped forward. “God, Lorelei, how long is it going to take for you to forgive me?”
She stared up into the face she’d once found so handsome. She’d thought she’d spend the rest of her life with this person. The fact that it hadn’t worked out had been devastating—made all the worse because of her background. She’d believed, with him, she’d finally had a real family, a forever home.
But he’d broken what they’d had, broken it so badly she couldn’t fix it. She knew that, even if he didn’t. “I do forgive you,” she said. “I'm just not going to get back into the relationship.”
“Why?”
She actually felt some sympathy for him. That in itself showed her how far she’d come—and that she was finally over him. “Because I don’t love you anymore.”
He stiffened as though she’d slapped him. “It’s because of that boy you met in Tahoe, right? You’re still in contact with him.”
He liked referring to Finn as a boy. He thought it was a clever putdown.
Finn was five years younger than she was, nine years younger than Mark, but he was a better man than Mark by far.
“I talk to him occasionally,” she allowed.
But since Tahoe, he hadn’t offered her anything more than friendship.
“He’s not what broke up our marriage, and you know it. ”
“I’ve already taken responsibility for that. And I’ve apologized. What more can I do?”
“Pick up and move on—while being the best father to Lucy you can be.”
“I am a good father,” he said, suddenly combative. “I’ve always been a good father.”
A good father would not have done what he did, but she didn’t point that out. “And I appreciate it. Lucy may not realize it yet, but she does, too.”
“So what about me?” he asked.
She hiked her purse up higher. “What about you?”
“I’m not happy with Francine. I’ve never loved her, and I don’t love her to this day. Living with her isn’t going to change that.”
“Then I’m sorry you ever slept with her,” she said.
He muttered something laden with expletives under his breath. Lorelei knew whatever he’d said wasn’t flattering to her. But at least he got in his car and left.
She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw him turn out of the neighborhood. But she didn’t let this most recent encounter upset her. That was more proof she was doing better. She had to be grateful for the emotional stability and hope he could overcome the divorce, too.
“You okay?” Mr. Rashid called from over the hedge that separated her house from his.
She hadn’t realized they’d had an audience.
The neighbors didn’t know the details of the breakdown of her marriage—she’d certainly never shared them—but it would be hard to miss the fact that she and Mark had struggled to get along.
Mr. Rashid had even called the cops once, when Mark was screaming obscenities at her and throwing things in the garage the day he moved out.
“I’m okay,” she replied and sent him a smile for looking out for her before hurrying into the house.