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Had she upset him by hesitating about accepting his invitation to his company’s ball? She hadn’t declined, she’d just needed to get used to the idea.
Chapter Five
Dazed, his fingers clasped on the steering wheel, Tim stared at the road, his thoughts swirling around one fact. Annette had stopped tutoring two years ago… Without telling him...
So where had she been going the two or three evenings a week when she’d left home supposedly to tutor her students?
“Where were you, Annette? And with whom? Not with your daughter, that’s for sure.”
Brianna had stayed with him or with a babysitter when he’d had to work late.
Someone honked behind him, calling him to attention. Damn it, he’d drifted to the left and could have caused an accident. He swerved the car back into the right lane and focused on his driving. In two minutes, he would be home and at liberty to vent his frustration, his anger, and his sorrow.
Somehow, he managed to reach home in one piece, opened his garage, and parked the car. He dropped his head onto the back of his seat. Was this some kind of nightmare?
His lawyer mind reminded him not to judge without proof. A person was considered innocent until proven guilty. He intended to search for proof. Until then, he would consider her innocent. His bubbly Annette, so loved by everyone, and especially by him, couldn’t be guilty of lying and cheating.
Oh God, no please. There was always a logical explanation for every crime... No, not a crime... To every appearance of what could be mistaken for a crime.
Huffing and cursing, he removed the tie strangling him at the moment and slid out of his car. Although the outdoor temperature had dropped to the freezing point, he was sweating and yanked off his suit jacket.
He paused in the ultra-modern kitchen—the kitchen he had remodeled only six months ago at a fabulous price to please her. Annette had rarely cooked. She’d been too busy teaching, preparing her classes, and…tutoring.
He grabbed the bottle of scotch, a cup of ice cubes, and a glass. Damn it, he would need a whole bottle to sustain him while studying this new development. Dragging himself up the stairs, he went straight to his bathroom and changed into his night shorts and a t-shirt.
Cursing, he poured himself a generous drink and took the first sip. Where to start?
According to the airline information center, her laptop and phone hadn’t been recovered yet. He shuddered, knowing he wouldn’t have the heart to browse through them. He slumped onto the edge of his bed, surveying their bedroom.
For the first two months after the crash, he’d taken refuge in his office, sleeping on the couch, unless Brianna asked to stay with him. Visiting the Perkins had alleviated the pain and allowed him to return to his bedroom where he spent a minimal amount of time, entering late at night to sleep.
So far he hadn’t had the heart to touch her dresser and dispose of her clothes. He guzzled the rest of his drink and walked to the dresser.
His eyes itching, he held the handle on the top drawer, inhaled, and forced himself to pull it open. His throat squeezed as he stared at her gloves, evening purses, custom jewelry. Gently, he fingered a crystal necklace he’d given her a few Christmases ago. “I miss you, Anny.” A few tears rolled down his cheeks.
How could he ever suspect her of cheating? There must be a logical explanation for her secret outings. Maybe she’d participated in a charity group and kept her good deed hidden.
Encouraged by this positive thought, he opened the second drawer where her underwear and bras lay in an appealing mess. He caressed the silk and lace pieces he’d reveled watching on her stunning figure and peeling off with amorous care. He recognized the pink bikini and the first thong she’d allowed herself, and …
What the hell was that?
His eyes bulged and his throat squeezed at the sight of a provocative red bra set with sheer, open lace cups and spaghetti straps, and a matching panty with a strappy waistband, an open crotch, a thong cut back, and adjustable garter straps with thigh high stockings. She’d never worn this trashy piece in front of him.
“What have you done, Annette?” Desperate, he rubbed his forehead, trying to understand the unacceptable. “Why? I did everything you wanted with love and respect.”
He swiped his hand through the rest of the lingerie, and found another disgusting ensemble he threw on the floor and thrashed under his feet. Unable to stand the sight of the bikinis and bras she might have displayed for another, he pulled the whole drawer out and overturned it.
The strange clank of something hard hitting the parquet attracted his attention. He bent, searched the floor, and found a jewelry box—her rings box. Incredulous, he picked it up and opened it. “Oh no. Oh God.”
If he wanted proof that she’d been cheating on him, here it was. Her diamond wedding band and the one-carat solitaire ring he’d given her when he’d proposed. She’d taken them off before leaving. He set them on the top of the dresser. Pouring himself another scotch, he swallowed it and stared at the open box and the diamonds sparkling under the lamp.
“How could you, you little slime?”
Had she started cheating on him two years ago when she trained the other teacher? Two years ago—two years during which she lied to him daily and neglected their daughter to run to another man.
No wonder she’d refused to sleep with him those last few months. What about earlier? Obviously, she hadn’t minded sharing herself between her gullible husband and her daring lover.
Who was the bastard who’d stolen his wife while he worked his ass off to offer her a better life?
