Page 51 of His Fake Wife

Throwing myself into the plush couch, I burst into tears, the images of Adam and that woman playing through my mind, taunting me. Turning into a weepy mess over a man pissed me off some more and I cried harder.

“Freaking hormones,” I growled into the empty room. It couldn’t all be blamed on hormones. Any one would be upset after being made to feel cared for only to be betrayed.

After days of enduring Adam’s cagey behavior and obvious lies, I’d given in to the impulse to confront him. I’d gone all the way to his office to give him a piece of my mind. Well, halfway there, I’d felt irrational after thinking things through and decided on a different approach. My new intention was to invite him out for lunch so we could talk about his feelings. Understandably, he might have started freaking out a little about the baby. Lord knows, I had many of those moments too.

Confronting Adam turned out to be a terrible idea. I walked right into him and his other woman. Who knew if she was the only one? It was made clear why he’d been lying and sneaking off every evening and sometimes early mornings. I’d even heard him whispering on the phone on multiple occasions when he thought I was sleeping.

Adam had played me for the fool for the last time. I wanted out. That was what I decided until he stormed in, and it hit me that walking away wasn’t going to be easy.

His eyes zeroed in on me. “Thank God. I called about twenty times. Why didn’t you…” He froze, staring at me with horror.

I hated letting anyone see me cry but it was too late to make a run for it. Glaring at Adam’s worried, annoyingly handsome face, I realized that he had way too much power over my emotions.

“Beth, what’s wrong?”

“You have some nerve asking me that,” I hissed.

He was on his way to me when he froze again. Eyes narrowing, he asked, “What did I do this time?”

I rolled my eyes, wanting to throw something at him.

“You having to ask that says a lot.”

“Actually, it doesn’t. You appear to be physically okay so I assume you’re crying because I did or didn’t do something.” He sighed, his expression softening, and a gentle smile appearing. He held up both palms as if I were some skittish animal, and said,

“Are you feeling moody? Is it the hormones? I read something about that so I understand.”

“Why, you…” It was the last straw. Rage surging through my very veins, I grabbed the first thing I could get my hand on and launched it at him. Too bad it was one of the throw pillows so it didn’t do much damage.

He dodged the pillow and turned on me with wide eyes.

“What the hell? This wasn’t in the article.”

“Damn you and your stupid pregnancy research, Adam.” I scrambled to my feet, fist balled and chest heaving. “How about you start reading up on how not to be a heartless asshole?”

“Excuse me?”

“I tell you I’m having your baby and mere days after you start?or continue for all I know?your affair. I know our marriage is a sham but you could have…”

He could have what? Put his side pieces on hold until the baby was born? Maybe I was the sidepiece. I mean, we weren’t exactly in this marriage because of love. That came later for me. If he didn’t feel the same way, I couldn’t hate him for wanting someone else.

“Beth, I’m trying to keep my cool here. What the fuck are you talking about? Who am I having an affair with? Because it’s news to me.”

All of my angry energy was gone, leaving me feeling incredibly foolish and embarrassed. I’d never been that girl. I kept my composure no matter what and I sure as hell never got so worked up over a man...apparently, unless that man was Adam. Hadn’t he been getting under my skin since I was five? I took a deep breath and exhaled.

“I dropped by your office earlier.”

“I heard.”

“I saw you with a blonde and you two seemed pretty cosy.” She’d been all over him, hand on his thigh, patting his cheek. Not to mention, he’d been gazing at her, hanging on to her every word. They’d been sitting so close, probably whispering sweet nothing into each others’ ears. I was sick with jealousy.

“A blonde? You mean, Janine?” Realization and then shock twisted his features. “You think I’m having an affair with Janine Griffin?”

Threading his fingers through his hair he stared at me as if I were crazy. Maybe I was.

“Have you lost your mind?”

“Janine Griffin, the event planner?”

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