Chapter 3
“This is insane, B! What is actually happening? Am I even married right now? Is it null and void because of the other marriages?”
That opened up a can of worms as well, considering now she felt like she had gone through all of this for absolutely nothing. At all.
She kept reading more on Christian. He seemed to be the perfect gentleman. He would wine and dine with women and then smile his way into their homes. Christian was a smooth talker, and he loved a good challenge. He definitely would have swept her off her feet.
She couldn’t believe what she was reading. Apparently, he had dealings with a mafia member some 7 years prior. He was on his way to become a mobster.
“Does that say he was a mule?” She screamed. The more she learned, the more she mourned for her marriage. And it hurt her more than anything.
“If this is how it’s going be every time you show me a new picture of him—just don’t share anything else with me anymore. I can’t even process what I have right here in front of me. Let alone whatever else you find.”
Brandi understood exactly what she meant. She was overwhelmed and couldn’t stomach learning anymore about her ex-husband that day. It was clear he had gone to great lengths to make sure she never knew about him. He thought maybe he had hidden himself very well, but there was always someone who could find the truth.
Clearly, he hadn’t banked on her finding out anything. But that was the thing about secrets. They always revealed themselves, especially when we didn’t want them to.
She had once trusted Charlie with her life. Now, she didn’t even know who he was. He was a stranger.
*
Being married to a nationwide scammer who had single handedly disassembled this whole town was too much. She knew everyone was looking at her and could feel eyes on her everywhere she went. She hated it. She hated coming to town anymore because everyone stopped in their tracks. She could feel the stares and hear the whispers.
“Evening, Mrs. Shorts.” Tommy said as he stepped toward her. His tone was cold. He must know something.
“Fancy seeing you here, Tommy.” She smiled back, trying to break the tension. She was glad to see him, but it seemed like he wasn’t very happy to see her this time. She didn’t know what he knew but he knew something just by the way he halfway greeted her. She pretended it didn’t bother her, but she wasn’t a very good liar.
“Yes, I have a job to do these days. You know, gotta keep the criminals at bay. It’s something I took an oath for.” He kept watching her. He was upset that he had let himself open up to her. She had the potential to bring him out of his shell, but now, he didn’t see anything but a liar. He just knew she was part of this in some way. He refused to believe she could be innocent. There was no way she could be that close to the madness and not have any clue it was happening.
“Is there—Did I do something wrong, Tommy?” She called him out. She didn’t like his behavior or his passive aggressiveness. She wished he would just be honest and tell her what was up, even though she doubted that would happen.
“No. I just think you’re an interesting woman. One I feel like I should always keep my eye on.” He was direct but not in the way she needed him to be. Something had changed him. He wasn’t as interested in her as he once seemed to be. She sincerely liked Tommy, and it hurt her that he was feeling this way.
“If I’m so interesting, why don’t you just tell me why you’re following me?”
“What makes you think I’m following you? I’m just in the right place at the right time,” he said. But that wasn’t the truth. He had in fact been following her for a while.
She tried her hardest not to roll her eyes into the back of her head. She was over it already. She didn’t need a chaperone, yet that was exactly what it seemed to be. No one trusted her except Brandi and Richy. Probably because they knew better; they had all the info.
“You’re following me. You’re following me for the wrong reasons. I have nothing to do with whatever he did. I had no part in any of that. At all.”
“If that’s true. I’ll find out for myself if you have anything to hide. Anything at all, I’ll find out.”
“Fine, continue to follow me if that makes you feel better. I won’t worry too much about it.” She forced a smile and turned around.
“I’ll get to the bottom of this. You mark my words.”
He meant everything he said. He was on her like a hawk and wouldn’t let up. He was determined to catch her. He knew she was trouble, and he hated that he was attracted to her. He wished he never met her that night in the bar.
Her smile haunted him every time he thought about her. He was the Sheriff and would eventually find out what she was hiding, but he didn’t like it. He hated secrets.
He also had an aversion to liars. If you lied to him and he found out about it, that was it. He didn’t give second chances for things like that. He’d followed her around the whole town. Watching her whereabouts and interactions was like watching TV or even playing a game. Though it wasn’t fun, it was necessary.
Willow Shorts had a lot to hide and she did as much as possible. If there was one person who could figure this whole thing out, it was him. He prided himself on his work.
“If you’re trying to intimidate me, you can give it a rest. I know you think I had something to do with whatever Charlie had going on, but I promise I didn’t. You’ll see. And when I show you, I’d like dinner as a formal apology for not believing me.”
She staked her claim.
If Willow was proven innocent, he would have to take her out on a date. He wasn’t the kind of guy that did dates. He hadn’t been on one in years. He was a little miffed at the suggestion but nodded instead. From here on out, he was going to watch her like a hawk.
“Fine by me. If you are found to be innocent, I will take you out to dinner. A nice expensive, fancy dinner, on me. I will also apologize to you in public. That’s how much I don’t think you are.” he explained.
She didn’t care about what he thought. She knew she was innocent, and Tommy would have to put his money where his mouth was. He wanted to prove that she was guilty more than he wished to see that she could possibly be innocent.
It was as if his judgment was clouded by his want to catch the guy who caused all of this grief in Sanibel Island. He had a personal vendetta and he wasn’t going to stop until he caught him and anybody who was helping him get away with this mess. He was the Sheriff and he was tired of Sanibel being a joke to others. Charlie had really pulled a fast one on some of the most unsuspecting people in Sanibel and it had taken a long time for them to finally try and put it all behind them. The only ones who hadn’t were the ones that had been directly affected by Charlie.
Tommy got sick to his stomach every time he thought of all the women he stole from. He took savings. He took dreams. He took and broke hearts at an alarming rate. The man was a menace who needed to be behind bars and nothing would have made Tommy happier than to be able to put him away for a long time.
“Just so you know, regardless of whether you feel like I am or not, I’m truly innocent. I had nothing to do with whatever Charlie was doing and I’m confident you’ll realize this sooner rather than later. I have nothing to hide. I was married to a conman. Like it seems at least 3 other women were too. They were victims, and so am I.” She was tired of it. She was being treated unfairly. And by a guy she happened to like.
“That’s fine. Just know, I’m everywhere.” He warned. He was serious. He really couldn’t imagine someone being so bold and such a thief. Even though he knew she was guilty, he couldn’t get over her audacity. Where Charlie was smart enough to do dirt and leave, here she was in his face; bold. And he didn’t want to give her an inch because he knew she would take a mile if she could. She had charisma. She knew how to talk to people. Especially him. The first night they met, she had him wrapped around her little finger. He was drawn to her. He had to play it safe now.
Willow sighed and walked away. The conversation was over. She had nothing else to say and was tired of having to explain to a man who was committed to misunderstanding her. She had better luck with Richy.
Richy may have started off on the wrong foot but he eventually got it together.
She pondered what he meant by being everywhere. Why did he feel she needed a warning? It was silly.
She headed back to the cottage. Today had already been such an eventful day for her. So many truths had come to light and she really wanted to relax. She wanted a bath. She wanted a glass of wine. She wanted to relax and honestly she deserved a reprieve.
When she got back to the cottage, she immediately undressed and got herself ready for a nice steamy bubble bath. Her body ached with grief. She was sore in places she didn’t even understand. It was all taking its toll on her. Charlie was a creep. He left her to fend for herself. He ran off with copious amounts of money and got to live off grid until someone decided to find him.
Her life had turned for the worse, it seemed. She drew her bath and added lavender and chamomile. She loved the smell and remembered times when Charlie drew her bath.
It stung her to realize that none of it was real. Even when it appeared to be just the two of them in their own world. It wasn’t real. It was a fa?ade. But she still couldn’t understand what it was about her, that he felt the need to come into her life and ruin it all.
In fact, in comparison to the others, she was the most modest. She didn’t have a lot.
Perhaps that’s why Tommy and the other detectives were so suspicious of her. The other women had things worth stealing. She didn’t. Maybe that’s why they thought she was in on his games.
She did have one thing more important than any of that, though. She had her dignity. She had her life back, and she was going to make a lot of changes going forward. She was prepared to look forward instead of backwards. She was ready to say goodbye to the myth that was Charlie.
He wasn’t hers anymore. She wasn’t his. She wasn’t anyone’s anymore.
She grabbed her towel and dried off once she got out of the tub. She moisturized and slid into a pretty silk robe. She needed time to unwind. Time to heal. She didn’t know where to start, but as her grandmother always taught her, the perfect place to start was the beginning.
She knew it wasn’t going to be easy. She was still one foot in the door and one foot out. She wanted to let go, but there was resistance. She didn’t understand the hold he had on her. He knew how to break her down. And now, she had to build herself back up with or without the help of others. And the hardest part was she wasn’t sure she could do it. But she just knew it needed to be done.