It soon became the norm. He would call every day around ten in the morning. I would email or text him when I knew that Dawson was off and would be at my house. Believe it or not, he didn’t call when he was there. This went on for almost a month until I couldn’t take it a second longer. I had to see him. I did feel bad for betraying Dawson, but in all honesty I had been illuminating him all along. He wouldn’t have liked my daily conversations with Drew.
My plan almost didn’t work. I told him that I was going to visit my mom for a few days. He wanted to come with me.
“I want you there,” I lied. “I just don’t think I should give that impression to Caroline. She has already met Drew, and she knows that he is my husband,” I explained.
“Are you ever going to divorce him, Ry?” he asked. I could tell that he was getting annoyed with the whole concept of me not filing for divorce yet. I was getting annoyed with him for constantly bringing it up.
I rolled my eyes and removed my legs strung across his on the sofa.
“I take that as a no,” he called to my back as I walked away.
“We have this same conversation over and over.
I’ve told you that I intend to divorce him. I don’t see what the big deal is. I’m here with you, aren’t I?”
“The big deal is, I don’t want to continue to go to bed with someone that has another man’s name, and I sure as hell don’t want that son of bitch’s name on my son’s birth certificate.”
“You know, Daw, he might not be your son.” Shit.
I didn’t want to say that out loud.
“Is that what you’re waiting on, Ry? Do you need to see if he comes out looking like him before you commit to me?”
“No. I didn’t mean it that way. Can we just go to bed?” I asked, not wanting to discuss this for the one hundredth time.
“Yeah, sure,” he unemotionally replied.
***
I was a nervous wreck waiting for Gary to pick me
up. I didn’t want Dawson to run by my house, which he often did during the day, just to check on me. I was terrified that he was going to show up while Gary was picking me up. I had told him that Star was driving me to the airport. She agreed to go along with me if Dawson asked, but refused to listen to any of the details. She didn’t want to know what I was doing, but at least she didn’t judge me the way Lauren did. Lauren and I had an understanding. She didn’t like the fact that I kept Drew at arm’s length, and I didn’t give her any unneeded information. I would have loved to have been able to talk to her, but I knew how she felt. She felt the same way that everyone felt. I had no one to talk to about it, so I kept my little secret a secret.
I slept most of the flight. I was doing that quite a bit it seemed.
The warm weather was refreshing. I loved this time of year in Vegas. Unlike Maine, November in Las Vegas was comfortable. It had been forty one degrees when I got on the plane. The seventy four degree temperature when I got off felt like a breath of fresh air.
I was a little mad that Drew wasn’t there to pick me up himself, after begging me for a month to come and see him. Gary drove me to the house. I was even madder when he wasn’t at the house either. Marta had a snack waiting for me when I arrived. I ate about half of my sandwich and text him.
“Where the hell are you?”
“Calm down. I’m almost there. I had an unexpected meeting. Don’t go upstairs until I get there.”
“Why?”
“Because I said so.”
I couldn’t even finish my sandwich. For one thing I wanted to know why I couldn’t go upstairs, and I could hardly wait to see him. I walked out to the front and sat down on the concrete step. I know that I only waited for about five minutes, but it seemed like at least an hour.
Drew got out wearing the grin that I loved. He was wearing his customary expensive suit and tie, but damn did he ever look hot. We weren’t even supposed to be together. I was in a relationship with Dawson, and I presumed that he was doing Celeste. I didn’t care at that moment. I wanted in his arms.
“Hey gorgeous,” He said, taking me in his arms.
“Hi. Why can’t I go upstairs?”
Drew laughed. I lost my happy smile when I saw Celeste standing behind the car carrying a stack of folders.
She smiled at me, and I gave her a fake smile back.
“Why is she here?” I quietly asked.
“She’s got work to do. Stop it,” he demanded, kissing me on my forehead. I grumbled a quiet throat noise.
Drew pulled me inside. We went into his office with Celeste first. I sat there with my arms crossed while he went over some numbers that were throwing a red flag or something. I was trying not to pay attention. I didn’t care. He was explaining what he wanted her to do when I got up to walk out. I didn’t come all that way to listen to him conduct business. Drew grabbed my arm before I had a chance to escape, giving me a look to be still. He stood behind Celeste and pointed to some sort of graph on the computer. His eyes were boring into me. I wanted her to leave so that I could get him naked. He was already driving me crazy, and I had just gotten there.
“I’ve got it. Go spend some time with your wife,”
Celeste animatedly told him, waving him out.
“Okay. Show me what you bought me,” I demanded once he had shut the office door.