Page 14 of Unmatched

She frowns. “Are you sure that’s a good idea? Maybe you should?—”

“What else am I going to do?” I snap with venom that isn’t meant for her. Honestly, the thought of having to speak to my employees or interact with other people at all makes me nauseous right now, but not as much as the thought of going home. “I’m sorry. I just need to do something normal...maybe not think about this for a while.”

She presses her lips together and nods. “You want to stay at my place tonight? Clear your head? I’ve got Netflix and ice cream.”

“That sounds nice,” I say. “Thank you.”

She clears our dishes, offering to drive me back to work in my car since she ran here, and I let her. She even takes me through the line at Dunkin’ Donuts. I hug her as she drops me off, thanking her again and vaguely processing her saying she’ll come get me after we close.

But as I approach my business, I slow. I’m not the same woman I was the last time I walked through the front door. That woman had a bright, secure future with a faithful husband who would always love and cherish her. She left for work and went about her daily life knowing she’d return home, climb contentedly into bed with him, and start it all again tomorrow. Now, that woman is gone.

I don’t know who I am anymore.

I avoid looking at Tomás or anyone else on my way into The Pooch Park, dropping the donuts on the counter and making a beeline for my office. But as soon as I step through the door, I’m overwhelmed by eighty-five pounds of fur and slobbery kisses. Which is somehow exactly what I need. I sink to the floor, shaking and burying my face in my dog’s neck, letting Heartthrob try his best to heal the hole in my heart.

CHAPTER EIGHT

“I need to do something,” I say as soon as I close the passenger door of my car.

Caprice assesses me carefully before pulling out of my empty parking lot. “I’m not sure you should do anything until you’ve had a chance to sleep on this, hon.”

I shake my head. Anton was all I could think about this afternoon. I barely functioned through my staff meeting or any of my phone calls. I hardly even registered the pic my mom sent of my new tiny little nephew. My mind just kept spinning around whether this whole thing is just about the hot springs or—my gut twists every time I consider—it goes deeper. If what Anton did was inevitable or if I could’ve done something to prevent it. And despite my anger, I keep getting stuck on that second possibility. Either way, I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep until I know what I’m going to do about it.

“Do I confront him?” I fidget in my seat, still unable to come up with any approach other than just screaming at him. “How do people deal with this sort of thing?”

Caprice raises her eyebrows, pursing her lips as she navigates west, crossing Colorado Boulevard. It’s a gorgeous evening, sunny and serene, though it looks like a bank of clouds will roll down from the mountains with the sunset, promising an evening shower. “According to my research, you have a variety of options. Personally, I’m in favor of moving out while he’s at work and having him served with divorce papers. Though, if you want to get creative, we could probably hack his Unmatched profile and change it to say he has STIs and a tiny dick.”

I frown.

“Too much?” she asks.

I shake my head. “It isn’t tiny.”

She nearly runs a red light, slamming on the brake at the last second, pitching poor Heartthrob halfway into the front seat. He braces himself on the center console and licks her cheek, as if questioning her ability to drive the vehicle.

“Ugh, get your stinking dog out of my lap, Lydia!”

“Heartthrob, off!” I say, and he quickly retreats. “Um, sorry...”

She grumbles, wiping the side of her face with her sleeve. I reach back and give his ears a rub when she’s not looking.

“I appreciate you letting him tag along.”

“The dog might be smelly, but he’s currently higher in my esteem than your stupid husband.”

I exhale. “Yeah, mine too.”

We drive in silence the rest of the way to her apartment building. Caprice recently upgraded to a studio in one of the newer high-rise towers southeast of downtown. She’s close to everything, and while she doesn’t have a ton of space, she has the most amazing views of both the front range—the literal purple mountains sweeping above the city to the west—and Denver’s glimmering skyscrapers to the north. She’s also steps from Washington Park, one of my favorite green spaces, with two lakes, sprawling lawns, and several jogging paths. I keep Heartthrob on a close leash as we follow her through the plush lobby and up the elevators to the tenth floor. Once inside, he makes a circuit of her apartment, sniffing over a few things, but quickly loses interest. Maybe because Caprice doesn’t have pets.

I unroll a portable dog mat and lay it by the front door. I already fed and walked him, but he must be so confused that we haven’t gone home. A lump forms in my throat when I think about it too. I point to the mat and he takes my cue, circling twice and settling down.

Caprice pulls a couple of foil-wrapped burritos from a brown paper bag. “Here, I picked up Illegal Pete’s on my way to get you. Potato and green chile okay?”

“Thanks.” I accept a plate and sit next to her on one of the barstools at the kitchen counter, though my stomach protests as I stare at the food. After listening to her chew for a few minutes, I look down at the counter and say, “I don’t want to get divorced.”

Caprice sets down her burrito and grabs a couple bottles of water from the fridge, handing one to me. “You could try therapy?” She doesn’t even try to hide her curling lip.

I twist my fingers in my lap. “I just wish I knew how serious this is. How far he’s taken it.”

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