Page 4 of Fate Forever and Always

He stopped walking and looked down at the floor.

“I… I don’t think I’m ready to get married.”

My eyes burned with unshed tears. I looked over at the dumb bitch still on my side of the bed, hiding her face. Then I saw it. The uniform from my mom’s restaurant was on the floor. Everything clicked.

“Sara?” She didn’t move for a moment; then she nodded her head yes, removed the blanket, and sat up. “You’re fucking Jake? How could you do this to me?”

She got up in a rush, trying to walk over to me just like Jake had. What in the hell is wrong with the two of them? Whywould they think I would want to be anywhere near their nasty, cheating bodies? I held my hand up abruptly, and she halted.

“Sara, I would stop right there. If you come any fucking closer to me, I will break your damn nose. Don’t fucking test me.”

“Callie, I am so, so sorry. This was the first time. I know that doesn’t make it better, but I—”

I stepped aside, making a clear path from her to the door. “Get the hell out. I don’t want to see you ever again. I will send your last paycheck to the address we have on file for you. Don’t bother going back to work.”

“Well, you can’t fire me for this,” she stated bluntly.

“Get. The. Fuck. Out,” I yelled. That time, it worked. She quickly grabbed all her clothes, and then she smiled. She fucking smiled back at Jake before she left.

Jake started speaking as soon as she left the room. “Baby, please. Let me explain.”

He had gotten dressed while I was yelling at Sara, so now he at least had a pair of shorts on. I sat on the end of the bed with my head in my hands, tears flowing freely.

I should have known something like this was going on. Jake has been so distant since proposing at Christmas last year. He has been worried constantly about my location and who I am with. It was guilt.

Sara has been a coworker for about two years. Her mom and my mom became friends when they moved here. Sara has been exceptionally friendly to me lately. That should have been a red flag. I can’t fucking believe I was so damn stupid. Not only one person in my life was fucking me over. It had to be two.

I started speaking without looking up at him. “Tell me something, Jake. When Aubrey caught that woman leaving the house a few months back, were you sleeping with her?”

“Callie,” he exhaled softly.

I looked him directly in the eyes. “How many people have you cheated on me with? And don’t fucking lie to me again.”

“Ten. I’m so sorry, Callie.” He tried to hug me, but I stood up and stepped back.

I wasn't sure if I was angrier at the number of people he had slept with or the fact that he didn't even have to think about it before he answered. He didn’t even hesitate.

“Fucking ten? So, you have fucked ten people while we were dating and while being engaged to me? How…when did it start? How did you even pull that shit off?”

He stood up to face me.

“Cal, I’m sorry. It started after I proposed. I proposed because I thought it was the right thing to do after we had been together for so long. I wasn’t ready, and I freaked out. It never should have happened. I’m sorry.”

It baffled me because I never, and I mean never, brought up marriage to him. We all joked about it occasionally, but I saw what marriage did to my parents. They fought uncontrollably all the time. My dad was an addict in every sense of the word, and my mom just dealt with it and ran the restaurant by herself while he wasted away at home. It was easier than trying to get him to want to be a good husband or father. I think they stayed together for as long as they did because of me. One night at dinner, when I was ten years old, I was so fed up with them fighting I blew my lid. I told them to get a divorce. My dad left that night, and I never saw him again. I was utterly content with never getting married. Now, I sure as hell never want to.

I took a deep breath to calm my racing heart and the internal rage that was flowing inside me. “Okay, so let me get this straight. Even though we've been together for over six fucking years, you couldn't tell me you made a mistake by proposing? You couldn't just admit you weren't ready to get married? Instead, you went along with this happily engaged facade justto sleep around with ten fucking women since December? It’s fucking August, Jake.” I couldn’t believe I was having this conversation right now. “Not even a year ago, you poured your heart out to me in front of our families, and you seriously thought cheating was the better choice? How does sleeping with other people help with you not wanting to get married, Jake? We were still getting married in two weeks, were we not?”

“Yes, we are,” he said.

“Were,” I firmly corrected.

“Callie, come on. It was just a little fun before we committed our lives to each other. It would have ended the minute we got married. I love you.”

Was he trying to make me feel better? I can’t believe I wasted over six years of my life on him.

Wiping my tears away the best I could, I stared him in the eye. “I’m leaving. I will be by tomorrow to pack my shit while you’re at work. Don’t even think about staying and waiting for me. You can keep the house and whatever is left. The lease is in your name anyway, so you decide what to do with it. There are only a few months left, anyway.” My voice got louder for the last part. “Since it hasn't even been a fucking year!”

He grabbed my wrist hard. “Babe, please don’t do this. We’re meant to be together. I know that now.”

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