Changing Course (18 page)

"Well, my name is Sarah Sharp, I'm Brett's wife." And with that one sentence, all of my fears are confirmed. "I just wanted to speak to you myself, make sure he wasn't cheating on me again. I'm sorry. I know how awkward this must be for you. Trust me, I'm embarrassed myself. It's just that I love him so much, but sadly he has a bit of a wandering eye, if you know what I mean. I just can't seem to convince myself to leave him, though. Jeez, now I'm just rambling. Anyway, I'm sure there is some explanation for all of this and I'm just overreacting. Do you work with Brett?"

"No," I say nothing else, trying to keep the tears that start to pool in my eyes out of my voice.

"Do you know him from the gym then?" she asks with a weird jovial tone to her voice.

"No." The tears start to flow down my cheeks and into my lap. It's ridiculous to feel this upset over a man I have been seeing for five days, but I stupidly thought Brett and I had something special. After hearing that he has been unfaithful in the past, I know those were just my own misguided feelings. I'm nothing special to him at all.

"Well, can you tell me where you
did
meet?" she snaps. I can't even be mad at her attitude. She is just as much a victim here as I am.

"He…um, comes into Nell's coffee shop for breakfast every morning. I work there, so we met a few months ago, but only started seeing each other, uhh, romantically a few days ago."

"Oh gosh, I can't believe he is doing this to me again! Are you sleeping with him?" she asks a little too calmly for a woman who just found out her husband is seeing someone else. Jeez, he really must do this a lot, for her to be taking it so well. I'm more of mess than she is right now.

"Um..." I drone out, trying to buy myself some time to figure out how to answer this question. I don't know this woman, and I surely don't want to explain to her that, yes, I've been naked with her husband, but not actually had sex with him. Crap, Brett is someone's husband! I'm assuming she would consider what Brett and I did on Monday night to be cheating, so I decide to just give her the abridged version, sparing us both the pain of the details.

"Yes, but just once. It was on Monday night. He took me out to Lang's, then we went back to his place...Oh God, did I do it in your bed?" I ask, and I swear I hear a muffled laugh. I can't imagine what she could find humorous in this situation. But before I have a chance to wonder about her strange reaction, she responds.

"No. He has a place in Chicago where he stays at when he has to work late. The kids and I live about thirty miles outside the city. It's hard for him to commute sometimes. Gosh, I thought that apartment was such a good idea when he suggested it, but now it seems like he takes every woman he meets there! I just assumed he was working late. I'm such a silly woman." She sniffles into the phone.

"You…you have kids?" I cry harder imagining beautiful green-eyed babies who look just like their father.

"Yes, two girls. They are the ones hurt most by his...extra-curricular activities. They miss him so much when he stays in the city."

My heart breaks for those innocent children. I can't believe he would do this. He seems so genuine and sincere, yet he’s out cheating on his wife every opportunity he gets. Great, he’s cheating on his wife and children with me! As I dry my eyes, I decide I no longer want to be a victim here. She needs to know the man she is married to so she can finally get free of his lies.

"He told me you were dead." I tell her quickly and quietly, before I lose my nerve.

"Oh, no, sweetheart. I am very much alive." She begins to loudly laugh into the phone. It confuses the heck out of me, because she doesn't even attempt to cover it this time. For the life of me I can't figure out what could be funny right now. Whatever. I guess we all react differently in stressful situations. I just need to fill her in, so I get off this phone and forget all about this conversation and Brett cheating Sharp.

"He said he lost you in a car accident." I pause as something dawns on me. "Crap, did he lie about Caleb's fiancé too?" I hear a loud bump, then nothing but cold silence.

"Hello? Are you still there?"

"I'm...here," she says, and for the first time since I answered my phone, I hear real tears in her voice. It's all probably sinking in for her now. Maybe her shock has worn off, mine certainly hasn't though. I listen to her sniffle for a second knowing that, in a way, I am responsible for this.

"God, I'm sorry. I had no idea he was married. You should probably know he doesn't wear a wedding ring either."

"Yeah, um... I should go." She answers as I hear a knock at her door over the phone.

"Hold on just one second, Jesse" I can hear her go to the door. Her voice clears up as she completely transforms from the sad woman she was only few seconds ago. "Oh, no problem, sweetheart, I was just chatting with Jesse."

"Sarah, what the fuck!" Brett's voice roars over the line.

"She needed to know."

"Really, what did she
need
to know?"

"That you're my husband."

"Jesse, hang up the phone!" I hear him shout over the phone as they exchange a few muffled words.

"You are such a dick, Brett! Is that any way to talk to the love of your life?" And that is all I need to hear in order to close this screwed up chapter in my life. I hang up the phone leaving Brett and "the love of his life" to hash it out between themselves.

I turn off my phone falling into bed crying over a man who doesn't deserve my tears. I try to forget, but I can't take my mind off of him. I think back over the time we have spent together, wracking my brain for all the signs I should have seen. I wonder what he told his wife while we were together. Would he sneak away from his family to call me every night? How long would he have strung me along before getting bored and moving on?

I must have fallen asleep at some point, because I'm awakened by an angry knock at my door. Half-asleep, and forgetting the craziness from earlier, I wander down the hall to see who is causing such a racket at...jeez it’s only nine P.M. I must have crashed out. I peek out to see Brett standing outside. Lord, he's sexy even with his face contorted through the oval glass of the peep hole. Suddenly, everything about the last few hours comes back into focus causing me to slide down the door just to keep myself from opening it.

"Jesse, open the door," he says quietly. I have no idea how he knows I'm here, but the fact that he doesn't shout at the closed door lets me know that he does. "I can see where you’re blocking the light at the bottom of the door. It wasn't there a minute ago." He answers my unspoken question.

Knowing I've been caught I quickly flip off the hall light sending the room into darkness. "And now, I know I was right because you just turned off the light completely. I'm a detective, remember?" I drop my head back against the door causing a loud thump. Wonderful, now I've confirmed his suspicions.

"Please, gorgeous. I have no idea what Sarah said to you, but let's talk about it."

"Go away." The sharp pain in my chest is too much.

"That's not going to happen. Let me in."

"I can't...I want you to leave me alone. Go back to your wife and kids. It's not right for you to be here." I begin to choke back the tears all over again. This is just ridiculous. I can't believe he even has the audacity to stand outside my door after his wife called me. "Go home!"

"I can't go home Jesse, not knowing that you are in there, hurt and upset," he says, and the pain in his voice is almost enough to make me want to reach out to hug him. Almost.

With his wife's words ringing in my ears, I remind myself that I am no one's dirty little secret. As much as I like Brett, he's a lie. It’s better I found this out now, before I have a chance to fall in love with the facade. I rise to my feet squaring my shoulders, ready to fight for the only person I can really trust. Me.

I yank open the front door to see him instantly meet my gaze. His assessing eyes glide over my tear-stained cheeks. Rushing forward he pulls me hard into his chest. He holds me, caressing my back, but I don't reciprocate. Tucked tightly into this man’s arms, my anger begins to fade from my body, but I refuse let it go completely. I stand limp, feet anchored to the ground, the rest of my body sways barely balanced enough to stand. He won't let me fall, and that realization hits me like hard a punch to the stomach. I mentally allow myself one minute to melt into his safe and comfortable arms, smelling his scent and feeling his strength as he kisses the top of my head. I enjoy this feeling for one last second before snapping out of the trance.

Shoving him as hard as I can, I push myself out of his grasp. I must have caught him off guard because he stumbles backwards a few steps.

"Get out, go home, and never speak to me again. Find a new place to eat breakfast, too. You may think I'm a naïve, easy play, but I'm not falling for your crap anymore. I know who you are Brett."

"Oh really? Who am I Jess?" He roughly runs his hand through his hair. Tousling it in the sexiest way.
Crap
!

"You’re a liar and a cheat. You played me which is bad enough, but for God’s sake, you played your own family, too."

"What did she say?" he asks, and I can almost see the flames shooting from his ears.

"Go home."

He sucks in a deep breath trying to collect himself. "Jess, when I'm angry I cuss...a lot. Last time I cussed at you, you freaked out. So let me prepare you, because I'm about to say a lot of words that you may not like. Please, don't take this personally, but I won't be able to watch my mouth." His calm voice raises to a shout as he obviously loses whatever control he collected just second ago. "Especially when you are telling me to go home to my wife and fucking kids. Now, before my head explodes, what the fuck did she tell you?" he screams.

"It doesn't matter what she told me. None of this is her fault, so don't you dare try to blame it on her. You're the one who lied to me. Why don't you try telling the truth for once? You would be amazed how liberating it feels. Jesus Brett, you told me you wife was dead. How do you sleep at night?"

"I never told you my wife was dead," he says, clearly befuddled.

I throw my hands up in the air and walk away leaving him standing in the doorway. I grab a beer from the fridge, not even bothering to offer him one. "You told me you lost her in a car accident. You said Caleb lost his fiancé too. Do you two work together? Lying about your dead wives to gain sympathy from unsuspecting women just to get them into bed?" I ask, taking a much needed sip of the beer.

Still standing in the foyer, his biceps bulge when he crosses his arms across his chest. Seriously, I have got to stop checking him out. No wonder he got me into bed so quickly. This man is good. Even knowing he's a big fat liar, I can't stop myself from lusting after him.
Damn it
!

"I told you I lost my wife in a car accident and that is the truth. I didn't realize that you thought she was dead. I see now how you would have assumed that though. I truly apologize for not being more clear. I never meant to imply she was dead, but you have to know that is the way I feel about her. She died years ago."

He sucks in another deep breath ready to continue, "Caleb and I are not working some big play to get women into bed. You are the first, and only, woman I have gotten into bed in over four years. Caleb's fiancé, Manda, actually died in the car that night. She was Sarah's best friend, and her death is a large part of the reason why Sarah is the way she is today. "

"Sure. Are you done yet? Because, you really need to leave." I can't listen to his lies. He is explaining away the fact that he has a living breathing wife. I'm not buying it.

"Sarah and I are still married." He finally tells the truth and even though I already knew, it still hurts to hear him actually admit it. "But she is not my wife anymore."

"That's not what it sounded like on the phone tonight."

"Jess, I have no idea what she said to you, but I'm starting to piece some of it together. She is the one who lied to you. We don't have any kids. We haven't lived together in over three years. I did lose her in a car accident that night. She didn't die, but I lost her all the same," he says in such a sincere voice, that I almost want to believe him. Then I remember the heartbreak in his wife’s voice when all of his deception hit her tonight. That alone, is enough for me to never speak to him again.

"You must think I'm a complete idiot. I spoke to her!" I shout to prove to him, and myself, that there is no getting past this.

"Where's your computer?" he asks oddly.

"I don't have one."

"You're a college student and you don't have a computer?"

"Are you here to make fun of me now? Add insult to injury? No, I don't have a computer. My old one broke, and I didn’t have the money to replace it. I work in a coffee shop, and I figured rent was a little more important than a new computer," I say sharply.

"I'm not making fun of you. Stop getting so defensive. I told you, I would never laugh at you. I meant it."

"Yeah, well you told me a lot of things that weren't true, so please excuse me for not believing you now."

"Jess, I want to show you something. Where is your phone? Sarah wouldn't give me mine back, and I didn't have the time to fight with her about it. I wanted to get over here and make sure you were okay. Which, you obviously are not."