Page 7 of He Doesn't Deserve You

When she returned to her seat, a shot of Crown Royal and a margarita awaited her at the bar.

“I figured you could use a shot,” the man said, causing Emily to blush with embarrassment over his witnessing her outburst.

She picked up the shot glass and downed it in one swift motion. “Thanks,” she replied, placing the shot glass on the bar.

“You’re welcome.” He held his hand to Emily, “I’m Travis, by the way.”

Accepting his hand, she introduced herself. “Emily. Nice to meet you.”

She sighed, her shoulders slumping slightly. “Sorry, you had to witness that. I’m not usually that confrontational. I just found out my husband is having an affair.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Travis said sympathetically. “If it makes you feel any better, I punched a guy in the face when I found out my wife was cheating on me.”

Emily’s eyes widened in shock. “What happened?”

“The guy pressed charges and had me arrested. I can’t blame him—turned out I had the wrong guy. My bad.”

“No, I mean, what happened with your wife?”

“Oh, we got a divorce,” Travis said matter-of-factly.

Emily frowned, then took a sip from her drink.

Travis shrugged his shoulders, “Who knows, maybe you guys can work it out,” he said apologetically.

“Yeah, maybe. If you don’t mind me asking. How long were you married?”

“Six years.”

“Any kids?”

“No.”

“We have a daughter. Ava is four.”

“Oh, that’s hard. Maybe you could try counseling?” he suggested.

“Yeah. I’m just in shock. I never saw the signs.”

Travis raised an eyebrow. “He wasn’t working longer hours? That’s what my ex did.”

“No, he’s a doctor, so he always works long hours,” Emily replied.

“Oh, I can see how that would make it harder to notice. How did you find out?”

“The credit card bill,” Emily said with a bitter laugh. “There were several hotel charges and multiple lingerie purchases.”

“Ah,” Travis said, nodding in understanding. “What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t even confronted him yet. He knows I know because I told him there was a problem with the credit card.”

“Just be prepared, he’s going to deny it.”

“Yeah, I know.”

Emily and Travis spent the next hour talking about infidelity, but Emily could feel herself getting increasingly more drunk, her words starting to slur. She had been drunk many times before, but this felt different. Turning to Travis, she said, “Thank you for the drink. It was nice talking to you, but I think it’s time I retired to my room. I’m not feeling well.”

“You’re welcome. I hope everything works out for you,” Travis replied kindly.

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