Page 52 of Starts With a Bang

Janet approached her husband with a serene expression. “Good?”

He swallowed the bite and smiled. “The best.”

“Enjoy it because it will be your last,” Janet replied calmly.

My eyes darted to Nana, but my mom had wisely confiscated the knife and moved it out of her reach. I met Sven’s gaze, and he mouthed, “I won’t be an accomplice.”

“What do you mean?” John asked with the cookie halfway to his mouth.

“You weren’t meeting with a former colleague, John. Your personal assistant is in Vail for the holidays too. That’s where you’ve been.”

“You’re drunk or paranoid, Janet. Even if Faith was here, it wouldn’t be that strange. Lots of people spend their holidays here.”

My aunt whipped her phone out of her pocket so fast that John flinched. “I’m sober as a judge right now.” She tapped her phone a few times before turning it around to show him something. “Here’s the lovely Faith showing off her luxurious accommodations to her followers. She doesn’t make enough money to afford a room that costs a thousand dollars a night.”

“You’re reaching,” John said.

Janet swiped her finger quickly over her phone as if scanning through a carousel of photos. “Ah. Here it is.” She zoomed in on the image and turned her phone around again. “Here’s my proof that you were in her bed.”

Christian moved over to his parents and looked at the device. He stiffened and aimed a scathing look at his father. “Dad?”

Sven turned a wide-eyed look in my direction and mouthed, “What is it?”

That’s when I noticed something missing from John’s wrist. I tapped my own and mouthed, “Watch.”

Sven’s eyes widened before he turned his attention to the drama playing out.

“That’s your Rolex,” Janet said, confirming my suspicions. “The one I had custom-made for you. The watch that was on your wrist when you left but isn’t there now. I’ve suspected your affair for a while, and now I know.”

John snorted. “The only thing you’ve been cognizant of the past three years is the amount of liquor in our bar at home. You’ve been blinded to anything else.”

“Don’t blame me for your failings, John. I can get sober, but you’ll always be a cheating bastard. I hope Faith understands that she’s just one in a string of affairs. There’s nothing special about her, and you’ll move on once you get bored.” Janet snatched the remaining cookie from his hand. “Pack your bags and go. I want you out of here and our house in Fort Collins. I don’t want to speak to you or talk to you. We’ll communicate through lawyers until we’ve dissolved the life we made together.”

“Fine by me,” John said with a careless shrug. “Faith is different from the others because I had planned to leave you as soon as the holidays were over. She’s the love of my life.”

“Ew, Dad. She’s younger than me,” Christian said.

John pointed at his son. “You have no right to judge me. Look at the company you keep.”

“Hey!” Emerson said. “Why is everyone turning on me?” He pivoted to face me. “Did you tell them about our conversation? That was private.”

“What conversation?” Mom and Dad asked.

“The one where he told Dom he’d made a mistake and wanted him back,” Sven said.

“Hey, you little shit,” Emerson said as he advanced on Sven. “Stay out of our business.”

I stood up so fast my stool nearly toppled, but it was Christian’s words that stopped Emerson in his tracks.

“I want you to pack and leave too, Em,” Christian said.

Emerson stopped and turned. “Baby, you don’t mean it. We can work it out.”

Janet snorted and blushed. “This is when I’d normally take a big ole drink of wine.” She reached for her glass of sparkling water instead.

“I don’t want to work anything out with you,” Christian stated firmly. “Just go. I’ll make arrangements to move out of the condo when I return.”

“But…I…we…” Emerson was speechless, a rare occurrence.

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