One
The man who couldn’t wait to get home to me now comes home late—if he comes home at all.
The excuses are always the same—late meetings, urgent client calls, and more frequently the unexpected business trips.
At first, I believed him. Why shouldn’t I?
His dedication to his work means we live here, in absolute luxury.
I can stay at home with my kids, play tennis, or go out for lunch, but lately, doubt has started to creep in, like the grim reaper lurking in the corners of my mind.
“Yeah, sure. I’ll be there in twenty.” Michael disconnects.
Indecision now plagues me. Am I making too much out of a feeling?
I head to the kitchen and brew a pot of coffee.
The box of fresh pastries I’d purchased for our once-regular movie night sits on the table untouched and I flip open the lid.
The aroma of freshly brewed coffee mingles with the scent of the pastries, but I shut the box, unable to eat.
The doorbell chimes and my brother greets me with a hug. We sit at the kitchen table and I tell him my concerns and show him the messages. Michael listens patiently, and his brow furrows with worry. I push the pastries toward him. “Do you figure I’m making too much of this?”
“Jessie, you need to talk to him.” Michael’s voice is like a soothing balm to my frayed nerves. “You can’t let this stress you out like this. It’ll eat you alive.”
The thought of confronting John terrifies me. I shake my head. “I can’t. What if I’m wrong? What if I’m right? Either way, our lives will never be the same.” I stare at him. “We have a prenup. If we divorce, I’ll only have what I brought into the marriage and that’s gone now.”
“Are you saying, all this is his, and he never gave you anything?” Michael’s eyes widen. “I figured he loved you.”
I wipe a hand down my face. “Obviously not enough to be faithful. I can’t prove he’s cheating on me.
It might be all in my mind, but he did come home stinking of perfume and he said it was from a client he shared a cab with.
Now I’m not so sure.” I look at him and tears sting my eyes.
“Am I imagining all this because I’m lonely and need to blame someone?
You’ve always said I have an overactive imagination.
I’m starting to question my sanity right now. ”
“All I can say, being in the same business, is that the higher we want to climb, the harder we need to work.” Michael reaches for a pastry.
“I know John has clients lining up for representation. He makes them money and is moving up through the firm faster than anyone else. I have women clients as well and they hit on me all the time.” He takes a bite of the pastry and hums in appreciation.
That piece of information hasn’t helped my troubled mind. “He gets women hitting on him all the time and I’ve never felt like this before. We had date nights and he made time to be with me but that’s stopped. He doesn’t touch me anymore. Men need sex, right? So where is he getting his supply?”
“Whoa.” Michael holds the pastry midway to his mouth.
“That’s not something I need to know, Jessie.
” He sighs. “Look, I’ll do some detective work and see if I can find out anything but remember, he’s way above my pay grade.
I don’t want to lose my job by snooping but I’ll see what I can find out. Okay?”
My stomach drops. Finding out the truth, if he is having an affair, will break my heart. “Then what will I do if he wants a divorce? I’ve got nowhere to go, no money, no job.”
“Mom and Dad will get you settled some other place if you don’t want to return home.
I can help too, so don’t worry about that.
You do what feels right.” Michael pats my hand.
“I hate to say it but we both know Grandma isn’t long for this world and Mom will inherit a fortune.
Mom has been spending every day sitting with her.
You should go and see her, before it’s too late.
” He sighs. “You know how much she dotes on you.”
The thought of losing my grandma makes my heart ache.
My safe havens, the people I love, are vanishing like mist in the morning sunshine.
My world is crumbling around me. Lost in my thoughts, I realize this is the beginning of a journey that will unravel everything I believe I knew about my life, my marriage, and myself.