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Tori looked horrified. “Wow. All of my thoughts are coming to life. It’s one thing if you’re thinking about doing something. It’s an entirely different matter when you actually have to do it.” Tori sighed. “I know you’re right. I’ll muster up the courage to ask him to take a walk with me. I might leave out the ‘talk’ part until we’re actually outside.”
“You don’t want to blindside him either.” He leaned in her direction. “Give it some thought. Write down what you want to say and memorize it. I always find writing something down gives you more clarity.”
“Thank you so much. This has been a big help.” Tori was no longer misty. “You’re right. I can’t expect him to know what’s on my mind if I don’t tell him.”
“You said you had ‘grown apart.’ Maybe you can replant some seeds. Oh my, no pun intended. Sorry.” Layton’s face went red.
Tori chuckled. “That’s OK. Kinda funny.” She sighed. “I’ll try to remember what it was about him that made me like him. The running-away part is kinda obvious. We were both running away from bad situations.”
“You know what you were running awayfrom. It’s never too late to figure out where you want to runto.”
Tori got up from her chair and returned to her desk. She answered the dozen-plus e-mails that had arrived the day before. They had lunch delivered and ate in the break room. Tori looked around and imagined how she would arrange it so it was comfortable for a baby. Maybe a new paint job, move a few things around, and create a comfortable space in the corner. She thought a nice folding screen would provide privacy but also add a little style to the room. She would also put something cheerful on the walls. Right now it was an outdated yellowed map of the state. She decided the lighting could be better instead of the old, ugly, buzzing fluorescent tubes. A couple of inexpensive floor lamps would create ample illumination. They could always turn on the ugly lights if necessary. Yes, a DIY remake of the break room wouldn’t take much and it would be a nice distraction. The idea elevated her mood. Once again she was feeling more in control. Little by little, but it was progress.
After lunch, she did some research for a case of land encroachment, and before she knew it, the day was over. She cleared off her desk and said good night to everyone. She checked her phone. Nothing from her husband all day. It had been over twenty-four hours. Maybe his phone battery had conked out while he was fishing. That thought made her wonder about dinner. Would he be bringing home a freshly caught fish? She decided to call his cell. It went straight to voicemail. She sent a text.
Hope you’re having a good day.
What do you want to do about dinner?
It took several minutes for him to respond.
Didn’t catch anything. Heading to Ringo’s.
Be home later.
That’s when Tori decided to take that strange woman’s suggestion and go to Ringo’s that evening.
When she got home, she changed her clothes and fixed a salad. Maybe she would grab a burger at Ringo’s. She was feeling the need for red meat. She wasn’t sure if she should let him know she was coming. Maybe showing up would be a nice surprise for him. Show him she was interested in what he did in his time off. It would also be a good opportunity to tell him she wanted to have a conversation with him. Maybe over the weekend.
Tori decided to wear a nice outfit and do her makeup as if she were going out somewhere special. She knew he would be puffed-up proud if she showed up looking her best. After all, she was a pretty woman, especially when she did her hair and dolled up her face a bit.
She pulled out a navy-blue jumpsuit from the closet. It had an empire waist, and she thought she might still be able to fit into it. She stepped through the pant legs, then the armholes, and then zipped it. Now she remembered why she rarely wore it. It was a production when you had to go to the bathroom. Why didn’t designers make them with . . . ? With what? Velcro? Or maybe stretchy straps so you could pull it down instead of having to unzip it and practically disrobe. This would be the jumpsuit’s farewell performance. She looked in the mirror. It looked great on her. No baby bump yet. She still had maybe two more months before she started to really show.
Her hair was now down to her chin, so she tucked one side behind her ear. She donned a nice pair of costume-jewelry earrings. Nothing flashy. Just enough to draw attention to her face and her pretty eyes. She added just a touch more makeup than usual. She took another look in the mirror. Maybe there was hope for her yet.
She’d grabbed her purse, keys, and phone and started on her way to Ringo’s when a burst of panic hit her. What if he got mad that she had showed up at “his” place? Would it be embarrassing to his friends? She stopped and calmed herself.Walk in with a smile and say hello to everyone as if you belonged there. His coworkers liked her, so they would probably be glad to see her. Maybe not glad, but they wouldn’t be annoyed. Men generally liked to look at pretty women. And vice versa. Women liked to look at handsome men. It’s just that women rarely said it out loud.
Tori parked the car and walked toward the outer door. It was an enclosed porch entrance with an interior window that looked into the bar. As she swung open the screen door, she spotted her husband through the glass. She also spotted a rather sleazy-looking woman hanging on him like a Christmas ornament. Tori froze in place. She watched the woman playing with her husband’s hair, and he wasn’t doing anything to dissuade her. She moved to the side of the window where she could still watch in shock but not be seen by the people inside. She pulled out her phone and sent him a text to see what he would say.
Hey. Any idea when you’ll be home?
His phone was sitting on the bar with what looked like cash and his keys. He glanced at the phone, then turned his attention back to the bleached-blond-bad-hair woman without answering Tori’s text. Tori switched to the camera app and secretly started taking photos of her husband and whoever the floozy was. She also noticed the time stamp. It read 9:00, which was the precise time the woman from the coffee shop said she should show up. That gave her the willies. Who was that woman and how did she know? Instead of breaking up the two lovebirds, Tori decided to turn around and head back home. Now she had a real reason to demand a conversation with him.
Her hands were shaking as she gripped the wheel. Her mind was racing as she came upon a tight bend in the road. An oncoming car horn blasted as it swerved to avoid clipping her. She could hear the driver screaming as he drove past. “Slow down!”
Tori immediately hit the brakes and regained control of her car. She pulled over to the side of the road to regroup. Seeing her husband with another woman in a place where he hangs out with his friends was truly not what she was expecting. What to do? What to do? She knew this time she couldn’t do nothing. She had to do something. That was becoming an anthem with her. Then she decided that doing nothing for the time being was actually doing something. She was going to wait for the right opportunity. She wasn’t going to react when she was in a state of shock.
As she returned to the road, she thought that maybe she would text him the picture she just took of them. Yes, but not now. At the moment, she was in charge. She had the power in her little art form. If he didn’t agree to take a walk with her, then she might show him her slideshow of his infidelity. Or was it? Was he simply flirting with that floozy? Showing off for his friends? She was going to get to the bottom of it. When she was good and ready. She had a lot of thinking to do. Again.
As the water filled the tub, she looked at the photos again, making them larger to see if she could identify the woman. Tori flinched at the first enlargement. The woman was much older but trying to look younger. The fake-colored hair and the heavy black eyeliner with blue eye shadow was not doing the woman any favors. “If that’s what he wants, then that’s what he can have.” Tori was baffled. Why on earth would he be with someone like that? She decided to go to the diner the next day and see if she could get more information from the woman who had told her to go to Ringo’s in the first place.
After her bath, Tori got into bed and willed herself to fall asleep. She did not want to be awake when he got home.
The following morning, Tori got out of bed unnoticed. She hurriedly got dressed and bolted out the door. When she arrived at the diner, she checked her face in the visor mirror. She took in a deep breath and told herself she was in charge of this situation.
She walked up to the area where you placed your order and asked about the woman. “Good morning. I was wondering if the woman with curly gray hair is in today?”
The waitress gave her an odd look. “What woman?”
