Chapter 3 #2
Giovanna returned with another round of drinks, placing them on the table between them.
Ellie paid this time, though Alba felt a small stab of guilt as she watched the transaction.
If anything, Alba should have been the one footing the bill tonight.
Ellie was about to sit through the worst chapter of Alba’s life; the least she deserved was free drinks.
“Are you sure you want to hear this?”
Ellie simply smiled and settled deeper into the booth. The soft lighting of the bar cast a warm glow over her features, the black off-the-shoulder dress she wore fell elegantly to mid-thigh, and her blonde hair looked as though it had been styled by someone who knew exactly what they were doing.
She was effortlessly elegant.
Alba, on the other hand, couldn’t remember the last time she’d spent more than ten minutes thinking about her own appearance. Lately, her days had consisted of unpacking boxes, searching for misplaced belongings, and making sure Colin was settled and comfortable in their new home.
“I’m sure.”
Well, that settled it.
Alba cleared her throat and figured that the only sensible way to begin was at the beginning.
If she laid everything out in order, there could be no accusations later, claiming that she’d omitted something important.
Even the small details. “Audrey and I got together about six months before Covid hit. We’d worked together for a while at that point, and she knew I was attracted to her.
” Alba gave a short, humourless laugh. “Looking back, I didn’t even think she was gay at the time.
Something seemed a little off about her, but I couldn’t put my finger on what it was.
Maybe I should have just left well enough alone. ”
“She must have reciprocated if you ended up marrying her.”
“Oh, she reciprocated. One hundred percent.” Alba shook her head. “I just…I guess I’m always looking for reasons and excuses as to why I never should have married her.”
Ellie nodded slowly. “That’s understandable.”
“By the time Covid came around, we were pretty close. I’d go so far as to say we were inseparable.
Audrey was always over at my place, or I was over at hers.
She loved Colin, and I was in the process of deciding whether he should have another dog to keep him company.
That was when we decided to get Ralph together. ”
Alba couldn’t help the smile she wore as the memory surfaced.
“They loved one another so much. Ralph wouldn’t leave him alone, and our relationship just seemed to blossom.
We kept it mostly quiet around school because we just didn’t think it needed to be a big thing.
An announcement, you know? Then we had the dilemma of the kids finding out about us and asking questions the way they do.
We just couldn’t be bothered with all that. ”
“Mmhmm.”
“Anyway, Covid happened, and we knew it was going to be serious once they started talking about lockdowns and bubbles and not seeing anyone face-to-face. Neither of us wanted to be alone, so Audrey invited me to stay over with her. I took Colin with me, and Ralph was thrilled.” Alba ran a hand through her hair, lifting her whiskey glass and taking a small sip.
“Before I knew it, I was living with Audrey—even after the lockdown had ended. Then she proposed, I said yes, and we decided it would be for the best if I sold my place and just moved in with her full-time. It made sense. Her house was bigger, and there was more room for the boys. It was outside of the city, and it just felt right, you know?”
Ellie cocked her head and smiled back at Alba. “It sounds like you were happy.”
Alba paused briefly. “I was happy. And the dogs were happy. Audrey… As far as I knew, was also happy.”
“It sounds as though you both fell in love quite quickly.”
“Looking back, I have to agree.” Alba lifted a shoulder. “But aren’t we all guilty of rushing into something at one time or another?”
“Oh, absolutely. I’m not judging at all.”
Alba swallowed. “Fast forward to eight months after we got married. Which was…around two years after we’d met.
” Even now, remembering that moment made her stomach turn.
She could picture the scene with uncomfortable clarity.
“I came home from work, and Audrey was up in the bedroom getting glammed up. I knew we didn’t have any plans because I hadn’t arranged for the boys to be looked after. ”
Ellie’s expression shifted as she listened intently. Almost as though she sensed what was coming next.
“Audrey informed me that she was going on a date that night.” The words still felt surreal, even now after so much time and hurt had passed. “I was confused. She surely meant something other than an actual date with someone else.”
Ellie frowned. “And did she?”
“No. She was going on a date with a guy she’d met through a mutual friend of ours.”
Quite clearly stunned, Ellie blinked repeatedly. “O-oh.”
“She didn’t go on the date, but it was from that point on that I knew I’d rushed into a life with her. That I’d never really known her. Turns out she was poly but had failed to mention that to me when we met. It hadn’t been an issue until then because of the on-and-off lockdowns.”
“Well, you’d think that piece of information would be important in a relationship, wouldn’t you?” Ellie cleared her throat. “Still, I think the lockdowns had that effect on a lot of people. You know, rushing into things. I just hope you don’t hold it against yourself, Alba.”
“I try not to.” Alba swirled her whiskey in her glass.
“Everything settled down after that night. For a little while, anyway. Until I found out that she’d been seeing one of the science lab technicians at work.
” She huffed out a laugh. “I’d seen her walking across the school grounds on so many occasions and wondered where she could be going.
She…was banging Rose in one of the stockrooms. She had been for three months. ”
Ellie’s face fell instantly. “Oh, Alba. I’m so sorry.”
“A good friend of mine at the time was there for me. She was another member of staff, and her husband also worked at the school. Really lovely couple. Jenny was in the history department, and Ronan was a football coach who also taught physical education. Jenny and I spent a lot of time together once I’d found out Audrey and Rose had been seeing one another.
” She paused and took a breath. “I don’t know what I would have done without her support in those days once I’d uncovered the affair. ”
“I’m glad you had someone you could lean on.”
“Once word got around that we’d separated and the reason why, a lot of staff took a dislike to Audrey. I don’t know why, I hadn’t asked them to take my side, but they did. She didn’t like that.”
Ellie sighed. “She spun it on you, didn’t she?”
“She did. She accused me of having an affair with Jenny.” Alba had hated that time in her life more than she’d hated knowing she’d wasted a number of years with Audrey. “It caused so much trouble between her and Ronan that they actually separated for a while.”
“Please tell me they’re back together now…”
Alba blinked in surprise. Most people paused here. Most people wondered whether Audrey was the one telling the truth. Ellie hadn’t even entertained the possibility. “They are, but…y-you believe that I didn’t have an affair?”
Ellie frowned. “Why wouldn’t I believe you? It’s quite clear that you’re traumatised by what’s happened. If it was true, you wouldn’t be sitting here freely telling me about it.”
Something inside Alba eased at those words.
“I should have known it was all going to be a mess with Audrey. She was Head of Department, and I’d barely qualified compared to the teaching years she had under her belt.
She probably saw me coming from a mile away and knew she could play games.
Meanwhile, I was just hopelessly in love with her.
” Alba shook her head and sighed. “What an idiot.”
“Don’t ever put yourself down because of someone else’s mistakes.”
Alba felt strangely lighter for hearing that. “I realise now that I’m happier without her. Sure, we all want it to work out and have that happy ending, but life is what we make of it, right? We don’t need someone else to complete us. I learned that the hard way.”
“Oh, I don’t know.” Ellie lifted her glass and sipped.
“I think most of us strive to fall in love and have the family and the stable home. You have plenty of time to find that again. Only this time, it’ll be with the right person for you.
” She clinked her glass against Alba’s. “Welcome to Park Haven. A place where people don’t bitch behind one another’s backs or cause trouble. ”
“Sounds too good to be true,” Alba laughed. “But thank you. I feel as though I’m ready to hit the ground running on Monday morning now that we’ve had this chat.”
“My door is always open. Don’t forget that.”
Alba grinned. This was the start of something amazing, and no ex-wife could take that from her. “And the same goes for you. At work and at home.”