Page 60 of Seasoned
And what the hell was going on with the makeover? She looked shiny and new and happier than he’d seen her in years.
Hector tossed some bills on the bar top. “If that doesn’t cover my bill, pay the balance for me and I’ll pay you back.”
“What are you about to do?” Martin asked with a worried frown.
“I’m about to say hello to my ex-wife,” Hector bit out. His gazed flew to the window, but they’d walked out of his line of sight. Shit.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. I think you should—”
Hector didn’t hear a word Martin said after that. He charged toward the door, pushing through what seemed like a mile-long obstacle course. He wound in between the tables, sliding past a waitress carrying a tray filled with drinks and then half-shoving his way through the crowd at the entrance.
He finally escaped and rushed outside along the waterfront. Under the night sky, couples strolled arm in arm and kids squealed as they ran ahead of their parents. He hurried in the direction he’d seen Adelaide go in, craning his neck for a glimpse of her and the pretty boy.
After minutes of brisk walking, twisting his head to and fro and almost having a heart attack every time he caught a glimpse of red, Hector finally admitted defeat. He stopped in the middle of the walkway and stared out at the dark water. He had no idea where they were or where they’d gone. They could have sauntered into one of the other restaurants or into one of the shops. Hell, they could have left already.
“No,” he muttered, chest hurting at the thought of her leaving with that guy and possibly going back to his place. Or worse, back to her place.Theirhouse. No, she wouldn’t be so brazen. He had called her cell phone twice but she hadn’t answered, and he already regretted the frantic message he left asking her to call him right away.
They were divorced, so it made sense that she’d moved on. That’s what people did. But he was damn near panicking at the thought of her leaving him behind and starting a new chapter with someone new.
“Calm down, Hector. She wouldn’t do that right now. Not while the two of you have been talking regularly.”
Would she?
He didn’t know for sure, but he knew how to find out.
Joseph pulledhis rental behind Hector’s Jeep Cherokee. “Looks like you have company.”
Adelaide frowned. “That’s Hector’s car.”
Hector exited the vehicle and rested his hands on his hips, staring at them. She couldn’t see his face well but knew from his intimidatingly rigid stance that he was displeased for some reason.
“Uh, need me to stick around?”
“No, it’s fine. He and I are good, but I didn’t expect to see him. Thanks for the night out. I had a great time.”
“I did, too,” Joseph said.
“Have a safe flight back.” Adelaide squeezed his arm and climbed out of the car. As Joseph pulled out of the driveway, she waved. He honked twice and disappeared down the street.
When she turned to face Hector, his grim expression gave her pause. “Hi. Is something wrong?”
“I don’t know, you tell me.”
“What?”
“You were on a date at Seaside Village with the man who just left. I saw you tonight when I was there with Martin. It’s now…” He made a big show of looking at his watch. “Almost twelve o’clock. I’ve been waiting here for three hours. What were you doing for three hours, Adelaide?”
He hadn’t raised his voice, but tension vibrated in his tone.
“Excuse me?” She wasn’t sure that she’d heard him correctly.
“I left a message on your phone, which you haven’t responded to.”
“I turned off my ringer because I wanted to have an uninterrupted night.”
“You never turn off your ringer because we have kids. What if something had happened to one of them?”
“I didn’t have these kids by myself. You’re their father. If something happened to one of them, they could call you, too.”
