sounded. “Moose does the PI work and deals with clients, I just take the pictures.”
“Sounds like it could be dangerous.”
“It’s not, I swear,” I assured him, then wondered why I was defending myself, when I’d come there to confront him. “Anyway, that’s not why I’m here.”
“Oh? You aren’t here to spy on Tracey again?”
I looked through the glass of his office at the woman who was back in her spot at the desk, then back at him.
“No, not today. I’m here because Elena had a talk with me last night. She wanted me to know that you introduced them to your girlfriend, who is, apparently, moving in with you.”
The Douche crossed his arms over his chest, the defensive gesture he always went to whenever I brought up something he didn’t want to discuss.
“ Okay …” he muttered warily.
“I thought we agreed to talk about it before we introduced the kids to anyone special in our lives.”
He sighed and admitted, “You’re right, we did … And I meant to talk to you about it. But then you came in last week and things didn’t go so well, and I never got around to it. I’d talked to Mary about pushing back our plans to tell the kids, but she’d already put in notice on her rental, so we couldn’t really do that?”
“Why didn’t you call or shoot me a text … something ?” I argued, then what he’d said penetrated. “Mary?”
“Yeah, Mary ,” he replied, his arm waving out toward the office a few feet away, where Mary, one of the loan officers that he’d worked with for the past ten years sat. “Didn’t the kids say?”
I felt like I’d been punched in the gut.
Mary? Did that mean Slutty Shirley Finkle wasn’t the one-time deal I’d thought? Had he cheated before? Had he been cheating on me for years ? Mary’d been to our house. I’d invited her over for holidays and family gatherings, worried that she’d be alone if I didn’t … Had I been made a fool this whole time?
Some of what I was thinking must have been conveyed on my face, because The Douche held up his hands.
“No, no, no , Lila, it’s not what you’re thinking … Mary and I were never together before. We’ve only been seeing each other for six months.”
“And you’re already moving in together?” I asked, not ready to believe him.
He ran a hand over his face and looked over at Mary, who was watching us through the glass, a worried expression on her face.
I tried to ignore the fact that we were on display, and kept my attention on my ex-husband.
“It may seem like it happened quickly, but we’ve known each other for so long … just as friends … so the relationship felt like it started in the middle, you know? I swear, nothing ever happened before, Mary will vouch for that, and you know she’s a good woman.”
He was right, I did know that, but still … I felt my eyes sliding over to look at her. Barely five foot two, carrying about one hundred and eighty pounds, and forever styling her hair in a bob, Mary had always been a friend. She was a mom-type person, always looking out for others. Calling if you were sick, making a casserole for work dinners, and always having a fresh batch of cookies in her cookie jar at home. She was probably a good five years older than me, and I’d always felt comfortable around her.
Now I didn’t know what to think. She was the exact opposite of Slutty Shirley Finkle, and not the kind of woman I envisioned The Douche going for once our divorce was final.
“Elena didn’t say it was Mary?” he asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.
“No, she didn’t,” I replied, chewing on my lower lip as I tried to decide how I felt about this new information.
“I was planning to tell you, I promise, and I want you to know that if everything goes well with our living together, I plan to ask Mary to marry me.”
Holy shit. The hits just kept coming…
I swung my gaze to him and asked, “Really?”
“Yes, Delilah, we have a good thing going, and she needs
“Sounds like it could be dangerous.”
“It’s not, I swear,” I assured him, then wondered why I was defending myself, when I’d come there to confront him. “Anyway, that’s not why I’m here.”
“Oh? You aren’t here to spy on Tracey again?”
I looked through the glass of his office at the woman who was back in her spot at the desk, then back at him.
“No, not today. I’m here because Elena had a talk with me last night. She wanted me to know that you introduced them to your girlfriend, who is, apparently, moving in with you.”
The Douche crossed his arms over his chest, the defensive gesture he always went to whenever I brought up something he didn’t want to discuss.
“ Okay …” he muttered warily.
“I thought we agreed to talk about it before we introduced the kids to anyone special in our lives.”
He sighed and admitted, “You’re right, we did … And I meant to talk to you about it. But then you came in last week and things didn’t go so well, and I never got around to it. I’d talked to Mary about pushing back our plans to tell the kids, but she’d already put in notice on her rental, so we couldn’t really do that?”
“Why didn’t you call or shoot me a text … something ?” I argued, then what he’d said penetrated. “Mary?”
“Yeah, Mary ,” he replied, his arm waving out toward the office a few feet away, where Mary, one of the loan officers that he’d worked with for the past ten years sat. “Didn’t the kids say?”
I felt like I’d been punched in the gut.
Mary? Did that mean Slutty Shirley Finkle wasn’t the one-time deal I’d thought? Had he cheated before? Had he been cheating on me for years ? Mary’d been to our house. I’d invited her over for holidays and family gatherings, worried that she’d be alone if I didn’t … Had I been made a fool this whole time?
Some of what I was thinking must have been conveyed on my face, because The Douche held up his hands.
“No, no, no , Lila, it’s not what you’re thinking … Mary and I were never together before. We’ve only been seeing each other for six months.”
“And you’re already moving in together?” I asked, not ready to believe him.
He ran a hand over his face and looked over at Mary, who was watching us through the glass, a worried expression on her face.
I tried to ignore the fact that we were on display, and kept my attention on my ex-husband.
“It may seem like it happened quickly, but we’ve known each other for so long … just as friends … so the relationship felt like it started in the middle, you know? I swear, nothing ever happened before, Mary will vouch for that, and you know she’s a good woman.”
He was right, I did know that, but still … I felt my eyes sliding over to look at her. Barely five foot two, carrying about one hundred and eighty pounds, and forever styling her hair in a bob, Mary had always been a friend. She was a mom-type person, always looking out for others. Calling if you were sick, making a casserole for work dinners, and always having a fresh batch of cookies in her cookie jar at home. She was probably a good five years older than me, and I’d always felt comfortable around her.
Now I didn’t know what to think. She was the exact opposite of Slutty Shirley Finkle, and not the kind of woman I envisioned The Douche going for once our divorce was final.
“Elena didn’t say it was Mary?” he asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.
“No, she didn’t,” I replied, chewing on my lower lip as I tried to decide how I felt about this new information.
“I was planning to tell you, I promise, and I want you to know that if everything goes well with our living together, I plan to ask Mary to marry me.”
Holy shit. The hits just kept coming…
I swung my gaze to him and asked, “Really?”
“Yes, Delilah, we have a good thing going, and she needs
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