Series 2: Chapter 1
I used to believe love could conquer
anything. Five years of marriage taught me otherwise.
For five years, I cherished every moment with Thomas, even when his eyes wandered to his phone, his fingers dancing across the screen with messages I pretended not to see. Even when he whispered “Jessica” in his sleep, I convinced myself it was just a nightmare.
Until that Tuesday afternoon.
The office had sent me home early – budget cuts meant shorter hours. I remember the
way my heels clicked against the marble floor of our bedroom hallway, how the sound echoed through the empty house. The moans drifting from behind our closed door should have stopped me. Instead, I pushed it open.
There they were, tangled in the Egyptian
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cotton sheets I’d picked out for our anniversary. Thomas’s back arched as he thrust into her, his voice hoarse as he called out her name. “Jessica… God, Jessica…”
My wedding ring felt like ice against my finger. The diamond Thomas had chosen. “because it reminded me of your eyes,” he had said.
I didn’t slam the door. Didn’t scream. Didn’t throw things like they do in movies. I just stood there, watching my husband make love to another woman in our bed, on our anniversary, with more passion than he’d
ever shown me.
Then I closed the door. Softly. They never even knew I was there.
I walked back down that hallway, my heels still clicking against the marble. But this time, each step felt like a heartbeat, counting down the death of something I’d spent five years trying to keep alive.
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They say when you truly love someone, you want them to be happy. Even if it’s not with you. But they never tell you how much it hurts to watch them find that happiness in someone else’s arms.
My fingers trembled as I pulled out my phone, scrolling through my contacts while my feet carried me down our curved driveway. Past Thomas’s gleaming BMW. Past the imported Japanese maple he’d planted “to make the house feel more like
home.”
I hit the call button before I could change my mind. Three rings.
“Morton & Associates, how may I direct. your call?”
“I need to speak with someone about filing for divorce. Today.” My voice came out steadier than I expected.
“One moment, please.”
The autumn wind whipped around me as I paced the sidewalk, each step taking me
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further from the house.
“This is Patricia Morton.”
“My husband is upstairs having sex with another woman in our bed. I need a
divorce.” The words tumbled out, raw and
unfiltered.
A pause. “I’m so sorry you’re going through this. Are you somewhere safe?”
“Yes, I’m outside.”
“Good. Listen carefully don’t go back.
–
inside right now. Do you have somewhere you can stay?”
I thought of Amelia, who’d warned me about Thomas years ago. Who’d seen
through his charm while I’d been blinded by it.
“Yes, my friend’s place.”
“Perfect. I have an opening in thirty minutes. Can you make it to my office?”
I glanced at my watch 2:45 PM. The same
–
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Series 2: Chapter 1
watch Thomas had given me last
Christmas, claiming it was “perfect for a Rivers woman.”
“I’ll be there.”
Patricia gave me the address. As I hung up, a text from Thomas lit up my screen: “Working late tonight, don’t wait up.”
I let out a laugh that sounded more like a sob. Even now, the lies kept coming.
I opened the Uber app and typed in the law. firm’s address. No more pretending. No more lies. No more being the perfect Rivers.
wife.
I pulled into our driveway at eight, the house dark except for the porch light. My hands shook less now, Patricia Morton’s words echoing in my head: “You’re doing the right thing.”
The sheets had been changed. The windows opened. But the scent of her
perfume lingered – something expensive, something that screamed Jessica.
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At eleven, headlights swept across the front windows. The BMW’s engine cut off. Keys jingled in the lock.
Thomas stepped in, his tie loosened, suit. jacket draped over his arm. Dark circles
–
rimmed his eyes not from work, I knew now. He froze when he saw me.
“You’re still up?” He ran a hand through his disheveled hair. “God, what a day at the office. Three back–to–back meetings and-”
“Did you have fun fucking Jessica this afternoon?” My voice came out calm, steady. “In our bed?”
Color drained from his face. His jacket slipped from his arm, hitting the marble floor with a soft thud..
“What are you-”
“I came home early. Around three.” I met his gaze. “The sounds you two made… I never heard you moan like that with me.”
“Cheryl, I can explain-”
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“On our anniversary, Thomas. In the bed where we used to make love.”
He took a step toward me, hands raised like he was approaching a wounded animal. “Baby, please ”
“Don’t.” The word sliced through his plea. “Don’t call me baby. Not when her perfume is still on your skin.”
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