“Where are we going?”
“Just a nice little drive,” she quipped. Her level of cheerfulness was beyond borderline suspicious. It reeked of a plan that I was made unaware of.
“Kelli, I’m not in the mood to go out.”
“It’s been half a week. You’ve been in the house for days, to yourself, doing nothing. You have 24 hours to snap out of it. You are going back to work tomorrow.” She went in my purse and fished out my sun block. “Here. Put this on, or I’ll put it on for you.”
I sighed as I took the bottle and began applying the sunblock. This would buy me another 20 minutes of safety if I were lucky.
“What about the meat? I have to cook it this weekend.”
“It’s already seasoned, and marinating. I’m going to stop by the house on the way out. Kristophe’s going to grill it, so it will not go to waste.”
Resigned to Kelli’s plans, I stopped protesting and told myself I’d be open to what the day would bring. I silently applied my sun block while she smiled her winning smile, letting me know there would be no winning this battle. Once done, I grabbed my favorite Versace shades, a gift to myself from last summer, and pushed them over my weary eyes.
Outside was hot and sunny. The heat was still strong, but it wasn’t the intolerable kind of desert hot that would scorch your ass the minute you perched atop your car’s leather seats. Looking around, there were a few kids running around and playing, their parents playing music in their garages, drinking beer, or sitting in view to watch.
In other words, it was a typical summer Sunday in California. With September around the corner, these days would be coming to an end. I wondered if I would still be torn up by Hollis’s affair then. I’d never been so hurt in my life, and I spent nights contemplating what I did to push him away. Not just in the arms of another woman, but another man?
Did I turn my husband gay? That’s the question that triggered me daily. Trying to figure out if his change in sexual preference had anything to do with me, or something I did. Maybe that’s why he no longer wanted to have sex. Blowjobs were something a man or woman could do.
No, can’t say that. I had to exert effort to give him a blowjob. He didn’t even want that from me.
It’s me, I told myself. I turned him off so badly he felt the need to try something completely opposite of what I am.
I was still contemplating this when Kelli turned the corner to her house. Jordan and Karter were playing outside. Kristophe and Hollis were drinking beer with another guy and laughing. The closer we got, the more my heart raced. They were drinking with Presley! He was standing between the two of them.
“Are you fucking kidding me!?” I screeched. The view was insane to me. The three of them were so engrossed in their conversation, chortling and sharing gut-belly laughs that they didn’t even notice us pulling up.
Here I was, at the sickest, lowest point of my life. I couldn’t even get out of bed over this bastard, and he had the nerve to be kicking it with his Mr. Mistress – and not even sending a text to see if I’m alive. He’s enjoying all life has to offer, and I’m suffering.
Kelli’s astonished expression and speechless demeanor indicated she was just as thrown off as I was. She took her time getting out of the car, more than likely trying to gather herself. I, on the other hand, did not waste any time jumping out the passenger side and slamming the door.
Walking up, fists balled, I shoved Hollis in his chest. “You have got to be kidding me! Are you fucking serious right now, Hollis? After everything I’ve done?!”
Hollis looked at me as if I’d lost my marbles. I flashed my head toward Presley, who stepped back quietly, eyes blinking as if he was looking at a mad woman. Even then, the glint of amusement in his pretty green eyes wasn’t lost on me. This was the outburst he’d been waiting for.
Kristophe stepped up, attempting to put distance between us. “Whoa, whoa. Natalia, what’s going on?”
I snapped my shoulder back from his touch. “Don’t touch me, dammit! You were in on this too, weren’t you!?”
“On what?” He looked genuinely confused. I rolled my eyes and returned my attention to Hollis. “His affair.”
Everyone fell silent. Hollis’s eyes flashed and hardened. There was a threat in them I’d never seen before, but in that moment I didn’t care.
“You think I wasn’t going to find out? Yeah, I know all about your affair. I know you’ve been cheating. That’s the real reason I’ve been home sick. I’ve been crying and trying to figure out how to make things work with you, wondering if it was even worth it…” My nostrils flared. “And you’re out here cheating on me – right now in this very second!”