Page 58 of His Loving Wife

“You don’t understand!” The voice was male, angry and unfamiliar. “That bitch thinks she’s entitled to everything.”

“You have to remain calm,” Andrew responded.

“I’ve been calm. I’ve tried everything to reason with her, but she’s got me by the balls and she knows it. She’s found some rich boyfriend to help with her lawyer’s fees. She knows I don’t have any of that shit!”

“You can’t act irrationally. You don’t want to do anything that might jeopardize the custody arrangement.”

“What else am I supposed to do? Sit back and let her take away my kids?”

Kate was listening intently, almost in a daze. It was like catching a bad scene in a television soap opera, but this was real life, some man she’d never met shouting about his problems to Andrew. Without realizing, Kate leaned forward, pressing on the door handle. There was a noticeable jangle. She tried to step back, but she was still close when Andrew opened the door. His cell phone was in his hands, the call obviously on speaker.

“Let me call you back,” Andrew said, clicking off before there was a response. “I thought you were going to the store?”

“I… I was. That’s what I was coming to tell you.”

“Were you listening in on my phone call?”

“No. I mean, I wasn’t trying to. I walked up and couldn’t really stop myself. Was that Raj?”

Andrew scoffed. “No, I finished talking with him. It’s just another guy from group. Trent.”

Kate stared at him, waiting for him to reveal more, but that’s all he said.

“He sounded so… angry.”

“Yeah. He’s in the middle of a nasty custody fight. I’m not sure how much you heard.”

“Enough to make me uncomfortable.” She cocked her head to the side. “Do all of you talk about your problems like this?”

“No, of course not.” He put his hands on her shoulders. “I’m sorry you heard him ranting the way you did. Like I said, he’s going through a lot right now. You caught him in a bad moment.”

Kate couldn’t imagine Andrew talking about any of them that way. She even felt pride about her husband, that she never had to worry about him going off the rails like that, but she didn’t like the idea of him venting about their problems to people with such short fuses.

“I know you say the group is helping you, but I don’t really like you talking to people who sound so… outraged.”

“Look, I’m sorry. I understand what you’re saying. You know I don’t condone the way he was talking, and in the right moment, I’ll tell him, too. Right now, I’m just letting him vent. That’s what the group is really about. Voicing our feelings without fear of being judged. Once he calms down, he’ll be able to make better decisions.”

“Okay.”

She trusted Andrew and had already witnessed how Second Chances had improved his demeanor. Maybe this angry phase was a necessary part of the process, one this Trent had just entered. She didn’t want to judge Andrew, even if she still did have reservations about his friend. She’d never overheard Raj or Vincent speak so viciously. She decided not to let one bad apple spoil her idea about the bunch.

She wandered outside, having forgotten to check the mail before she arrived. Usually, Andrew was the one to check it, but the counter where he left her portion of the stack was empty. She was mesmerized by the way the clouds seemed to drift smoothly, filling the blue void.

Dana saw her from across the street and approached. “Have any plans this weekend? It’s been ages since you’ve been over, and I’m dying to try this new recipe.”

“That sounds lovely,” Kate said, looking back at the house. “Maybe next week? Andrew’s a little slammed with work.”

“On a Saturday?” The words came out so quickly that Kate wondered if Dana had meant to say them aloud. Her friend quickly recovered. “I guess I can’t say much. José works the same crazy hours.”

Dana had started dating a guy who worked at the same company as Andrew. They met over holiday break. She’d been pestering Kate about going on a double date, but Kate kept pushing her off. She wanted to make sure her relationship with Andrew was mended before they started socializing with friends again.

“You look great by the way.” Dana’s eyes scanned Kate’s body. “Do you think I’d look this good if I traded Doritos for half an hour on the elliptical every day?”

“Stop,” Kate said, waving her off. Truth was, Dana already looked great. She was at least a foot taller than Kate, which made it easier to hide her weight.

But Kate couldn’t deny that her weekly visits to the gym had improved her appearance. She noticed the changes in her body, the way outfits that once stretched across her middle now draped. However, the biggest changes she noticed were internal. She felt less tired in the afternoons. More energetic in the mornings.

She opened the mailbox and sifted through the envelopes. At the bottom of the stack was a letter addressed only to her. She opened it.

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