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I can’t let him sleep with me forever. We’ll have separate bedrooms again someday once we move out of Rue’s place, and I won’t get to feel his warmth next to me as I fall asleep. But for now, this is heaven. Sleeping together has comforted both of us in the wake of losing Dean from our lives.
Turning over and looking up at the ceiling, I wonder where my husband is and what he’s doing at this moment. It feels weird to call him my husband anymore. Dean is a stranger to me now. I can’t even contemplate leaving Nolan like he did. Caring more about myself than him.
It’s been a long time since we were close. I spent nearly all my waking hours with Nolan, and found that even when I was with Dean, I felt lonely. He looked through me instead of at me.
I smile as I remember my conversation with Pike last night. He was interested in what I had to say. We talked just for the sake of talking. He hired me, which I’m crazy excited about.
Our initial meeting was rocky, to say the least, but he’s forgiven me and is starting to become a real friend. I’d forgotten what it feels like to have someone in my life that knows and cares about what’s going on with me. Someone who makes me laugh. Pike seems to be a genuinely good man, and I can’t help hoping that maybe someday, we can become more than friends.
I slip out of bed, grab clean clothes, and quietly close the bedroom door behind me, going into the bathroom to take a quick shower before Nolan wakes up.
I’m halfway through rinsing my hair when the bathroom door starts to open. Nolan must have woken up.
“Good morning, love,” I say, used to him walking into the bathroom when looking for me.
“Morning,” Rue says, walking inside and closing the door behind her.
“What the hell? I’m naked in here.”
“Obviously, since you’re taking a shower.”
“Can’t you use your own bathroom?” I ask, covering my breasts with my hands.
“I needed to tell you something. Relax, it’s not like I’m looking at you.”
I sigh softly. She’s my sister and I love her, but Rue doesn’t know the meaning of the word boundaries.
“What have I told you about turning on the bathroom fan?” she demands. “The steam creates moisture that could lead to mold.”
“Sorry, I just forgot. I usually use it.”
She flips on the fan and continues, raising her voice to talk over the noise. “Anyway, I have good news and bad news.”
“Hit me with the bad news first,” I say, rinsing the rest of the shampoo from my hair.
“Well, Tom Warner emailed me last night, but I didn’t see it until I woke up this morning.”
My ears perk up, because Tom Warner is the attorney from the firm Rue works at who is handling my divorce.
“And?” I prod.
“There’s no easy way to say this. Tom thinks Dean left town because he’s in major financial trouble. A warrant has been issued for his arrest because he apparently stole money from some clients and never finished their projects, and now he can’t pay the money back.”
I look down at the shower drain, watching shampoo bubbles swirl around and around as the water drains. This feels like another punch in the gut I never saw coming. Just another thing I was completely oblivious to.
But this feels worse than everything else—both for me and Nolan.
“What does this mean?” I ask my sister, my panic level rising. “Am I going to have to pay it back? Will I be arrested, too?”
“No. He took out loans in his name only that he can’t repay. And he has agreed to sign off on a quick, no-fault divorce so this won’t affect you financially.”
I turn the shower off and the room grows quiet.
“What does this mean, Rue?” I ask, looking at her through the glass shower door.
“It means you’ll have to appear before a judge in the next few days. Tom can call in favors and get your case on the docket right away. Dean is signing off on everything. Once you sign off, too, you’ll be legally divorced. You won’t get any money, and you likely won’t get child support out of him for a very long time, but you’ll be done.”
Tears spring to my eyes and begin to trickle down my cheeks. “Done? I’ll be done within a few days?”
“Yes. It’s almost over.”
I don’t hide the fact that I’m crying from my sister, because they’re tears of joy. Dean upended my life the day he left, and all I want is to walk away from him and never look back. I hate that he’s Nolan’s father, but I’ll just have to be the best single mom.
“Will he go to jail?” I ask Rue, strictly because of Nolan.
