Chapters (54)
- Cover
- Epigraph
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Epilogue
- A Note from the Author
- Discussion Questions
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Acclaim for David Rawlings
- Also by David Rawlings
“Have you suggested seeing a professional? Surely the hotshot marriage counselor believes in counseling?”
“I suggested it, and he refused.” A reflex kicked in, a defense of her husband. “Daniel’s a fixer—most guys are, I get that—but he’s so good with the tools he uses to fix everyone else that he can’t put them down when it’s our problem.”
Jasmine raised one eyebrow. “Really, Kel? Honestly, to me it looks like you’ve got two options: confront him about it or—”
“I have tried confronting him, but he keeps telling me he’s done nothing wrong. I don’t know why I don’t believe him.”
“It’s because your intuition isn’t buying it.”
Maybe Jasmine was right. Daniel was too defensive about the women at work. She realized she’d cut short Jasmine’s answer. “What else were you going to say?”
“What do you mean?”
“You said or. Or what?”
“Or you could give him a wake-up call by threatening to leave.”
Kelly went cold. The thought that had toyed with her for months had just been spoken aloud. The thought that had flourished the moment she opened that bank account in a pique of frustration after Daniel had tried to fix her for what seemed like the hundredth time. And while she couldn’t bring herself to transfer any money to fund her defiance, she hadn’t closed the account either.
Jasmine leaned forward with a cheeky grin. “That wasn’t a no.”
“My marriage vows were promises I meant to keep. For better or worse. This is just the worse part. I might have packed and unpacked my suitcase in my mind a few times, but I won’t follow through on it.”
“How much worse do you want it to get before you do something that makes you happy again? I’m not saying you leave—just threaten to leave. Maybe that will shock him into action.”
The chatter in the atrium crept closer.
“Well, that’s not being honest.” The other regular unwelcome thought jumped forward. If she removed herself from the picture, that would make it easier if there was someone else. She had to get off the topic so she could survive the rest of the day.
“So what do you think about these rumors about Mendacium and—” Jasmine stared openmouthed over Kelly’s shoulder.
Kelly swung around and stared into a wall of black. Her eyes scanned up the T-shirt with a rising dread until she looked into the charismatic face of Tarquin Gascon. His jaw rippled, the twinkle in his eyes glittering like minerals in a bed of stone. “An interesting question”—he flicked a glance to her name tag—“Kelly. I’d also like to know. What do you think about them?”