our separate ways. “Hope you sell out of everything today!” I shout over my shoulder.
She chuckles, giving me a thumbs-up.
The rest of the day at the garage is busy as hell. Robert texts me again about tonight, and I decide to join him. Apparently, I need to dress nice because the client we’re meeting is extremely high profile. I read between the lines of his message and know he wants to impress her. A few minutes later, he calls me.
“Hey, darling. What’re you up to?”
I smile at his genuine tone. “Just working my ass off. It’s been a Monday from hell.”
He chuckles. “Hope I’m not bothering you.”
“You’re not,” I say, as I make a fresh pot of coffee because I’m hitting my afternoon slump.
“Oh, I wanted to ask if you could write Winnie a check? She’s ordering some things for the wedding, and I’m about an hour and a half away from the house.”
“Yeah, sure. Not a problem. Can I do it when I get off at five?”
“That’s perfect. The checkbook is in the top drawer of my desk. Write it for five thousand, put it in an envelope, and place it in the mailbox. She said she’d run by after she got done with a client. I won’t have time to make it home before I pick you up for dinner.”
“Will do,” I tell him.
“I miss you and am so happy you’re coming tonight,” he admits. “Can’t wait to see you.”
“I know, baby, me too. Only a few more hours,” I remind him.
“Will you stay the night with me afterward?” he nearly begs. “I know it’s not the weekend, but I bought you something from that lingerie shop you like. Thought you could model it for me.”
A smile touches my lips. It means a lot to see him actually trying to spend more time with me. “Yeah, I’d love that.”
“Thank you for everything. I gotta go. Don’t forget about taking care of that for Winnie. Love you!”
“Love you too, Robert.” I end the call, then get back to work. The rest of the day passes by in a blink. Just as Dad promised, all the vehicles are ready to be picked up before close. He looks and sounds exhausted. We lock up and say our goodbyes.
When I pull out of the parking lot, I head over to Robert’s house and turn off the security alarm, then walk into his office. When I agreed to marry him, he added me to his bank account, though I never use his money for anything.
I sit at his oversized oak desk and open the top drawer. Once I find his checkbook, I write it out for the amount he said, then scribble the information in the registry. Afterward, I notice a handful of payments for three thousand dollars that are all dated within the last month. They’re not written out to anyone in particular, so I flip to the carbon copies to see if there’s more information. I sit there confused because the name is blank and only has the dollar amount and his signature on them.
Sucking in a deep breath, I close the checkbook and place it back in the top drawer. It doesn’t close properly, so I reach my hand in and pull out several wads of crumpled paper. Instinctively, I smooth them out and notice they’re handwritten receipts.
The moment I read the company name, my heart drops.
I can’t breathe and nearly gasp for air when I realize they’re for a private investigator.
With shaky hands and adrenaline rushing through me, I put them where they were, hidden and wadded up behind the stack of files. I grab Winnie’s payment, stuff it in an envelope, and try to calm down.
After I place it in the mailbox, I get the fuck out of there. I’m so angry that I’m nearly in tears, and I can’t think straight. Maybe it was for something else, but I know for a fact I was being followed, and hell, maybe I still am. That means Robert was gaslighting me when he said he didn’t know what I was talking about and made me feel like I was going crazy.
I have a feeling he knew exactly what was going on, and that’s why he didn’t come to my rescue. It makes me sick that he’d do this to me.
How do I even bring this up after we agreed to put more effort into our relationship? This will undoubtedly change everything. I’ve lost complete trust in him and faith