“What is it?” Martha demanded.
He swallowed hard. “Nothing.”
“It doesn’t look like nothing,” I said, crossing my arms.
For a moment, nobody spoke. Then Melanie stepped closer.
“Mark,” she whispered, “tell them.”
His face turned pale.
The phone rang again.
This time, I could hear the voice on the other end.
“Mr. Reynolds, this is Human Resources. We need you to return all company equipment immediately. Your employment has been terminated effective today.”
The entire driveway went silent.
“Terminated?” Melanie asked.
Mark quickly ended the call.
“They made a mistake.”
But nobody believed him.
Especially not me.
The truth came out only minutes later.
The company training trip to Miami had never existed.
Mark had used vacation time.
He had lied to his employer.
He had submitted fake expense reports.
And worst of all, he had been carrying on an affair with Melanie during work hours for months.
Someone in the office had discovered everything.
The investigation had finished that morning.
His job was gone.
His salary was gone.
His health insurance was gone.
And now his house was gone too.
Martha looked as though she might faint.
“You lost your job?”
“It’s temporary,” Mark snapped.
Melanie stared at him.
“You told me you got promoted.”
Nobody said a word.
“You told me your bonus was coming next month.”
Still silence.
“You told me we were moving into a new house.”
Mark looked away.
That was the moment Melanie understood.
PART 3
The next few weeks were surprisingly peaceful.
I filed for divorce.
Because the house belonged solely to me before the marriage, there was little for Mark to claim.
My attorney smiled when she read his text message announcing his beach wedding.
“That may be the most expensive text message he ever sent.”
Mark moved into a small apartment across town.
Melanie moved in with him.
At least for a while.
Then the phone calls started.
The first came at midnight.
“Jessica, listen—”
Click.
Blocked.
The second came from another number.
“Jessica, I made a mistake.”
Blocked.
The third came through Brenda.
“He wants to talk.”
“No.”
Three months later, Melanie left him.
I found out through mutual friends.
The luxury vacations disappeared.
The expensive dinners disappeared.
Reality arrived.
And reality wasn’t nearly as attractive as fantasy.
PART 4
Six months after the divorce, I received a certified letter.
Inside was a request.
Mark wanted to meet.
Against my better judgment, I agreed.
We met at a coffee shop.
The man sitting across from me barely resembled the confident husband who had texted me from a beach.
His hair was thinner.
His eyes looked tired.
His expensive watch was gone.
“Jessica,” he said softly, “I miss us.”
I almost laughed.
“There is no us.”
“I know I hurt you.”
“You married another woman while still married to me.”
“I wasn’t thinking.”
“You planned it for a year.”
He lowered his head.
Then he said something unbelievable.
“I think we can start over.”
I stared at him.
“You think you can cheat on me, marry someone else, lose everything, get divorced, and then simply come back?”
His face reddened.
“I was hoping you’d forgive me.”
