Rachael was shocked and elated. Never in a million years did she think her parents would approve of a divorce. You made your miserable bed and now you have to lie in it was a much better summation of their take on life. But getting married hadn’t really been her choice. She had been pressured into it. Yes, her parents wanted stability for her, but they hadn’t counted on the misery that went with it.

Aaron Newmark was a man of his word and provided Rachael the counsel of the best divorce attorney in the state, Lloyd Luttrell.

She and Greg tried to keep the divorce civilized, although Rachael was always seething when it came to Greg. Over the course of their marriage, Greg had spent a good chunk of Rachael’s trust fund buying luxury cars and expensive designer clothes. That, too, caused a great deal of contention. He said it was important to look rich. No one was going to trust a poor-looking accountant. He had a point, but he had carried it much too far. He was supposed to be the breadwinner and she the dutiful wife, whose half-million-dollar bank account was at his disposal. As soon as the smell of divorce was in the air, Rachael’s father and her lawyer tied up all of her assets so Greg could no longer treat them as his personal piggy bank. They sold the elaborate McMansion they had bought with part of Rachael’s trust fund and put some of the money away for Ryan’s college education. Greg was lucky to get out of the marriage with the fancy designer shirt on his back.

To that day, Rachael had never had a total grasp on how much of her money he had milked. She knew she was complicit by not paying attention. But still. It was not his money to spend.

Once the divorce was final, Rachael used the rest of the money from the sale of the house to buy the dance studio from its owner. She renovated the space and hired more instructors, and the studio doubled its clientele in less than a year. It helped that she was located near a senior-citizen community with most residents only in their mid-fifties. Part of the studio’s service was planning dance parties for organizations. Rachael had finally hit her stride.

The women stared at Rachael. Nina was the first to speak. “Wow, he really took advantage of your family’s money.”

“Oh, that’s not all.” Rachael tossed her head back. “He was cheating on me the whole time.”

Screams of “What?” “Are you kidding?” “You can’t be serious!” went around the table.

Rachael crossed her arms across her chest. “No, I’m not kidding, and yes, I am serious.”

“Holy smokes!” Amy broke in. “How did you find out?”