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I pluck all the courage I can find. I’ve fought monsters far worse than the emotionally broken woman before me. She might be a crazy alcoholic, but I can kick her ass – four months pregnant or not. I stare her down. “Why did you turn the lights off?” I grit out.
“It takes the backup generator ten minutes to kick in.”
Even with no way to confirm, I’m sure it’s been ten minutes. Yet her phone torch is the only source of light we have. I look at the door to see if light seeps through the cracks, but nothing.
She’s not talking about the lights.
“The cameras.” It’s not a question.
She hums under her breath. “Take a seat, Savannah. We’ve got some catching up to do.”
This is the part where I must face the mirror. So, I do. I tell Emery everything from when I worked at EspresSoul and the friendship that built, to the start of the affair.
“I wasn’t trying to hurt you and never set out to ruin your family.”
“But you just couldn’t stop yourself.” Her statement isn’t one of sarcasm – it’s one of understanding. “You can’t walk away from a love like his.”
“I’m sorry. I know it doesn’t make this any better, but I am. I told him nothing else would happen until he filed for divorce.”
Her shrill laugh catches me off guard. “Divorce?Xavier will never file for divorce.”
She’s delusional. He doesn’t love her, and she knows it. She doesn’t even love him.
“He will.”
“For you?” The grin on her face is a tell-tale she finds the idea humorous.
I sit taller. “Forhim. He doesn’t love you.“ As harsh as it is, she needs to hear it.
Her calculating eyes roam down my body. “Were you ever my friend? Did you help me design the nursery thinking it would beyouputting my baby to bed?”
“No! Nothing was going on between us then. Iamyour friend.“ The statement feels ironic, considering the tale I just told her.
“Friends don’t fuck each other’s husbands.”
“You’ve cheated on him too,” I snap. As guilty as I feel, she doesn’t get to sit on her high horse. She riddled the marriage with her affairs.
Her eyebrows shoot up in surprise. “I don’t care about his infidelity. It’syouI have a problem with. I welcomed you into my home. I trusted you to bring my family to life. I chose you to carry my baby. I shared dinners with you. I shared my heartache with you. And you used all that to fuck my husband.”
I lean forward and narrow my eyes. “Xavierwelcomed me into his home.Xaviershared his heartache with me.Xavier chose me.”
“Let’s see if he does.”
The pounding at the door is loud and makes me jump. “Open the door, Emery! Let me explain,” Xavier begs.
She clears her throat. “Go away!” Her shout drips with hurt and anger, but her face is blank.
She’s putting on a show for him.
“It isn’t what you think,” he pleads. “Just open the door and let me explain.”
Emery gives me a knowing smirk. “I don’t want to hear it! Go crawling back to her.”
Xavier doesn’t accept defeat. What he says next stills my heart. “It was a mistake. It only happened once, and I hated myself for it. I lost myself in the moment. Please let me in.”
I try to reason that he’s only trying to pacify her. But if he planned on leaving her, why is he denying it?
She stands up and walks to the door. “I don’t believe you. I saw the way you looked at her.”
