My chest went hollow.
I was so sure I knew that voice.
I had already built an entire story in my head about my husband. Standing there, hearing that music and that laughter, I was completely convinced.
I took the spare key from the linen closet hook. Drew one slow breath. Unlocked the door. Pushed it open.
Candles on my nightstand. Soft music playing from a phone propped against my lamp. Rose petals scattered across the floor. And Alice, standing in the middle of my bedroom, wearing my Paris dress, looking like she’d been living that life for weeks.
Because she had.
Next to her, a man I had never seen before was reaching for his shirt from the chair.
Alice’s face shifted from shock to something like irritation—as if I were the one intruding.
“Sh-Sheryl?? What the hell are you doing here?!” she demanded. “You weren’t supposed to see this!”
I looked at her. At the man. At my dress, the candles, the rose petals.
“You,” I said to him, holding his gaze. “Get out of my house. Right now.”
He left his jacket behind and was gone before I finished speaking.
I turned back to Alice, everything I’d been holding in rising all at once.
“How long has this been going on?”
Alice crossed her arms. “It’s not what it—”
“Alice. How long?” I cut in.
She exhaled. “A few weeks. He’d come when you were at work. I’d let him in while Mason was counting. He’d go straight to the bedroom, and I’d lock the door. Mason just thought it was part of the game.”
I stared at her. “You used my child as a cover. Do you understand what you just taught him? That adults can ask him to keep secrets from his mother.”
She tried to respond. I didn’t let her.
“You brought a stranger into my home. You wore my clothes without asking. You lit candles in my bedroom while my son played alone in the hallway. And you made him promise to keep secrets from me.” My voice dropped. “You’re fired. Get your things and go.”
“Please, Sheryl… I need this job, just let me explain…” she pleaded, stepping closer.
“There’s nothing to explain. I’m calling the agency today. And I’m posting in the neighborhood group tonight. Every parent considering you will know exactly what happened here.”
She grabbed her bag and left. The front door closed behind her with a final click that felt like relief.
Continued on next page
For complete cooking times, go to the next page or click the Open button (>), and don't forget to SHARE with your Facebook friends.
