20. Ford
FORDCHAPTER 20
A lthough I wanted nothing more than to take a scalding hot shower and wash every last trace of Claudia off my skin, I knew it wouldn’t be enough to rid the apartment of her—I’d have to clean the rest of the place as well.
The bedding she’d been half-nakedly writhing on (and God only knew what else)—sheets, pillowcases, and a duvet that Emzee had bought—all went immediately into the laundry.
The bathroom got thoroughly bleach sprayed and scrubbed top to bottom, all the floors were Swiffered within an inch of their lives, and I Lysoled every room just to be sure any remnants of my ex’s unwelcome visit were neutralized.
If I was the woo-woo type, I would have burned sage, but I settled for lighting an ocean breeze scented candle I’d brought from Chicago.
It was Emzee’s favorite, and the smell reminded me of her.
Once I felt like everything was clean enough, I finally took that shower so I could feel completely rid of Claudia, even though she’d barely touched me.
Then I dressed as fast as I could and headed downstairs to talk to Emzee.
I needed to explain what had just happened, and we still had to sit down and have the Talk about our lives and our future together.
There would be zero hesitation on my part.
I didn’t care what my parents wanted —especially after my mother had meddled by sending Claudia to New York, which had been a complete, unmitigated disaster.
I knew what I wanted.
I just had to hope Emzee wanted the same thing.
Outside her apartment, I dug out my keyring, but then hesitated.
I had a key to Emzee’s place, but I knew I was already on thin ice with her thanks to the whole Claudia thing…
it seemed unlikely that barging in unannounced would help matters.
So I decided to knock instead.
Let Em be the one to decide if she wanted to let me into her space.
Or not.
I held my breath, waiting for her to come to the door, my adrenaline pumping.
Seconds passed that felt like minutes.
Maybe she hadn’t heard me the first time.
I knocked again.
From inside, I could hear Munchkin’s muffled barks, Emzee’s voice hushing him, and then it quieted.
She was probably putting him in his kennel so she could answer the door.
But when it finally opened, I had to take a step back to prevent myself from swinging.
Because none other than Andrew fucking Apellido was standing there.
In his goddamn polo shirt and khakis, with his stupid blonde hair and egregiously chiseled chin.
My blood was up, and all reason fled my brain as I stared him down.
What the hell was with this guy?
Did he have some kind of fucking sixth sense?
He was always lurking around Emzee like a vulture after she and I had a fight, like he just couldn’t wait to swoop in and be her rebound.
It took every ounce of self-control I possessed not to punch him right in his smug fucking face.
Again.
But I had made a promise to Emzee that I wouldn’t hurt Andrew again or drag him into our shit.
So instead of attacking him, I pretended he wasn’t there.
Over his shoulder, I could see Emzee sitting on the couch, arms folded over her chest, looking right at me.
Okay then. Time to do this.
Pushing Andrew aside as politely as fucking possible, I stormed into the apartment and redirected my anger toward my wife.
“What the hell is going on between the two of you?” I demanded, gesturing behind me at where I assumed Andrew was still standing.
Emzee stood and faced me, her anger matching mine.
“I’m pretty sure that’s none of your business,” she said.
“I’m pretty sure you’re still my fucking wife,” I reminded her.
“Unless you’d rather be with Andrew. Because it seems like you always run straight to him whenever we have a problem.”
Emzee laughed coldly.
“Well, that shouldn’t be an issue going forward, because I don’t expect any future problems with you once the divorce goes through!”
“Over my dead body,” I said.
Because with a forged signature on those divorce papers, I sure as hell didn’t consider us divorced.
“We are definitely over,” she insisted.
“And what do you care about who I’m friends with anyway? It’s obvious you’d rather be with Claudia.”
“ Fuck Claudia ,” I said with passion.
“You know as well as I do that she’s a conniving bitch. You see her in my apartment looking ready to pounce and you automatically assume the worst? Did it ever occur to you that she planned the whole thing?”
“I don’t assume anything when it comes to you and Claudia,” Emzee said.
“But it’s obvious that she’s a better match for you. She always was!”
“I should probably go?” Andrew suddenly cut in, reminding both of us that he was still there.
“I’ll just let myself out.”
“Good,” I said, at the same time Emzee said, “no, don’t go.”
She looked at Andrew pleadingly.
“Sit back down,” she insisted.
“Please. I need you here.”
She needed him?
Was she being serious, or just trying to piss me off?
The only person she needed right now was me—her fucking husband.
Not this damn interloper.
“He doesn’t need to be here for this,” I argued.
Andrew was still standing in the threshold between the kitchen and the living room.
“Well I want him here,” Emzee said stubbornly.
“Andrew, stay.”
“You can go,” I told him.
Unsurprisingly, he didn’t listen to me.
Instead he walked past me and eased into a chair in the living room across from Emzee, who had plunked herself back down on the couch.
“This is a conversation between the two of us,” I said.
“Not the three of us.”
“Do you think I want to be alone with you?” Emzee scoffed.
“Maybe we should invite Claudia down here, just to keep things even.”
“Claudia is gone ,” I said.
“How convenient. I hope you had fun together.”
“ Nothing happened ,” I said between clenched teeth.
“You always assume the worst when it comes to me and her, but we are done. We’ve been done for a long time, as I just reiterated to her before I threw her ass out of my apartment, Louis Vuitton luggage and all. She’s out of my life for good!”
Emzee rolled her eyes.
“How could I not assume the worst?” she asked.
“I came to your apartment and she was in your bed dressed in a fucking pink doily!”
“Jesus. She let herself in!”
“Which means she obviously has a key! Which you obviously gave her!” Emzee screamed.
“Tell me again how I’m not supposed to be jumping to conclusions here, because usually when you give someone a key to your place it isn’t because you want them out of your life for good!”
I scrubbed my hands over my face, almost laughing at how fucking ludicrous it all was.
“My mother gave her that key,” I said as calmly as possible, praying Emzee would start to see the truth.
“She planned this whole thing with Claudia behind my back. When I was in Chicago, she was nagging me nonstop for a key to the new place, and when I got home today I finally realized exactly why that was.”
Emzee looked at me.
I could see my words were finally beginning to sink in.
“You didn’t give her that key?” she asked.
I moved toward her, and as I did, Andrew got up from his chair, but Emzee stopped him with an extended hand.
“Never,” I told Emzee.
“I swear to God. I wouldn’t’ve given my mom a key at all if I’d known what she was going to do with it. And I’m going to call Louie as soon as I get back to my place and tell him I need to get the locks changed.”
Emzee looked away and sighed, then met my gaze, her expression guarded and unreadable.
“Then…you really don’t want Claudia?”
“Of course not. The only thing I want is you ,” I told her.
“You and our kid and whatever kind of happily ever after we can make for ourselves. I’m here for all of it. The white picket fence, the smelly diapers, those embarrassing dog sweaters you get for Munchkin. I mean, if that’s what you want, too. The decision is yours. You get to choose.”
I heard a quiet intake of air from Andrew—guess he didn’t know the happy news—but I didn’t really care.
Maybe it would finally convince him to back off.
“I love you,” I added.
If this was my last chance with Emzee, I didn’t want to hold anything back.
“I’ve always loved you. It just took me way too long to figure that out, but believe me when I say I’ll happily spend the rest of our lives trying to make it up to you.”
Emzee blinked up at me, searching my eyes, and then, as if we hadn’t just been screaming our heads off at each other, gave me the kind of smile I had been waiting for since that night of the gala.
“…I choose you, too.”
I couldn’t help myself.
With one firm yank, Emzee was in my arms and her mouth was on mine, her hands clutching my shoulders as she melted into me.
It was exactly what I wanted.
Emzee in my arms. Everything felt right again.
Well, almost everything.
But as our tongues tangled, I heard the sound of her front door opening and closing.
Thank God Andrew knew how to read a room and had shown himself out.