Chapter 10
If I wasn’t insecure about this before, I definitely am now.
I don’t wanna be that wife that’s insecure because my husband has a work friend who just happens to be female.
But let’s be honest, most of the reason why we end up being insecure is because there’s usually a reason for it.
We know what can happen. And seeing both of them together, maybe nothing is wrong with their relationship, but it makes me feel uncomfortable.
The way Sarah keeps leaving me out of the conversation specifically to only address my husband, knowing that I’m a guest at his party, makes me feel really uneasy. I wonder if her husband is here or her boyfriend. I wonder if I can start chatting them up how she’d feel about it.
Then I look around and finally cut in after she and Lincoln have been talking for about fifteen minutes straight, animatedly, about God knows the hell what.
"So, Sarah, did you come with anyone?" I ask.
It’s almost as though Sarah completely forgot I was standing there. She puts on that fake smile.
"No. Just mostly coworkers," she answers.
"Are you married? Boyfriend or anything?" I ask.
Sarah just stares at me, and both of us hold that strange look between us.
"No," she says, and for a second that little polite facade drops, almost like she’s offended I even asked.
"Oh, okay. You're very beautiful, so I figured you'd have someone," I tell her.
"Not every woman needs to be on a man's arm. I'm very independent," she replies.
"Well, just because you're independent doesn't mean you can't have a man. I have one and I'm independent," I counter.
"Oh, I thought that Lincoln was the one paying all your bills."
Holy shit. What the shit?
This woman has lost her damn mind. I want so badly to headbutt her. Instead, I put on a tight smile. Lincoln looks between us, sensing the tension.
"Sarah, Gabby makes her own money," he tells her.
"I thought you said that—" she mutters.
"Anyway, let's go and greet Tom," Lincoln interrupts, cutting everything off.
And this makes me even more uncomfortable because… seriously… is Lincoln talking to Sarah about our financial stuff? It’s very inappropriate.
I don’t wanna make a scene, but this is rude.
Sarah is just downright rude.
And throughout the evening, it’s not just this one occurrence.
I catch her staring at me, smiling that fake smile, assessing my body.
Sarah does have a better body… at least I think so.
But what hurts even more is the way she checks out Lincoln every moment she gets, even with me standing right there.
She makes it a habit of pulling Lincoln away under the pretense of talking to him privately, smiling at him, getting him to talk to other people in such a way that constantly leaves me by myself or pushed into conversations with people I don’t even know.
Then, one of the times in the evening while I’m talking with some of the other female coworkers, I see Sarah take a pastry and stuff it in Lincoln’s mouth. He leans back a little like he’s trying to avoid it, but she laughs as if it’s a joke.
It’s extra embarrassing because by now, people know Lincoln is my husband. Some of the girls look at him and then glance back at me, almost checking to see whether I’m okay with this.
Time to excuse myself. Doing so, I stand in the corner, taking a drink. Lincoln is going to be driving back anyway. My eyes are locked onto my husband for the next two hours from across the room as he completely forgets I’m even there. He spends almost the entire time with Sarah.
They walk around talking to other coworkers, but she’s always by his side.
Eventually, I’ve had enough.
I call for a ride to take myself home. I’m walking out when Lincoln finally notices.
"Baby, where are you going?" he asks.
"I'm leaving. Why do you care?"
I don’t want to be that person, don’t want to make a scene, but he really hurt me. He broke my heart tonight.
"Baby," he calls out again.
"What do you want, Link?" I ask, turning only slightly.
"The hell is going on? What's wrong with you? What did I do?"
"You spent the entire evening, basically, of the party hanging out with Sarah."
"Baby, it's a work party. I have to be here and interact with the coworkers."
“And apparently leave me all by myself like I don’t exist.”
"You chose to distance yourself. You walked away," he adds.
"Because you don't even see me. Everything's all about Sarah."
"Babe, don't do this to me," he presses a finger to his temple.
"Don't do what to you? You know how embarrassed I am? You're letting her feed you and put food in your mouth?!"
"She does that to everybody. She's… it's a joke."
"It's not funny to me, Lincoln. If some other guy was doing that to me in front of all your work friends, you would be embarrassed."
"Baby, there's nothing to be embarrassed about." He runs his hands through his hair. "Jesus, babe. Please don't make this a drama thing. It's not that serious."
"I'm telling you it makes me uncomfortable," I let him know.
"Then you shouldn't have come. I dunno what to tell you."
That… right there is what makes my stomach drop.
"You're right. I shouldn't have."
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