Page 39 of Where You Belong

“Have you been drinking?”

“Huxton, can you go to your room, please?” he says it as a question, but the authority rings clear in his voice. It’s not meant as a question, but a command.

Huxton nods, ducking his head so his chin touches his chest. He rounds the dining room table, turning to walk toward his room when he stops and glances over at me.

“Mom…?” he says.

“It’s okay, sweetie. You can take my phone with you and play your game while I talk to your dad. It’s in my purse. Okay?”

He nods, swiping my phone from the table. He looks back over at me, dipping his head back down, and stalks down the hall.

Once I hear the click of Huxton’s door closing, my head darts back to Atlas. Anger simmers in my blood.

“You can’t possibly think I’d let him go with you when you’ve been drinking, Atlas. Are you out of your damn mind? Why would you even drive here? Don’t you know what could happen if you got into an accident?”

“When were you going to tell me you’ve been seeing that guy from the other night?”

My heart thumps wildly in my chest, thoughts swirling through my mind.

“Wha-what? What are you talking about? What guy?”

“Don’t play stupid with me, Haelynn.” He takes a step toward me.

I’m still turned from when I was talking to Huxton, so the move forces my back against the wall. He towers over me.

“Atlas, please don’t do this. You’re drunk.”

“Don’t do what, Haelynn? You’re the one who left me, took my son, and decided to move into this piece of shit house. Now come to find out, you’re fuckin’ some guy behind my back. Have you forgotten you’re still married? That means you're mine as long as our marriage is still legal.”

He tilts his head down, tracing his nose along the side of my jaw.

“You’re fuckin’ mine, and I think you need to be reminded of that fact. Don’t you?” Spit shoots out of his mouth, hitting the side of my face.

He reaches his hand up, grabbing my arm. It’s still tender from the last time, causing me to wince.

“No.” I grit my teeth, attempting to jerk my arm away from him. “I’m not yours. As far as I’m concerned, I haven’t been yours since the first time you put your hands on me.”

“Excuse me?” He slams my arm against the wall above my head. “I don’t know who you think you are, but I think you’ve forgotten who you’re speaking to.”

“Atlas, let me go right now. Let me go and leave or I’m going to call the cops.”

“Oh really? You going to call that little fucking punk of yours to come over here? Is that what you’re going to do?”

How does he know who Corbin is and where he works?

He grins, and it turns into a laugh. Maniacal. It sends a chill down my spine.

“What? You didn’t think I knew? Did you think I hadn’t heard after pictures of the two of you are splattered all over the fuckin’ internet?”

I sigh in defeat.

“Did you think I wasn’t going to see them? Like the word wasn’t going to get around? I got people in my fucking office coming up to me, asking about pictures of my wife with another man. I have to find out from one of the guys at work.”

He finally releases my arm, letting it drop to my side. He doesn’t move, keeping me pinned against the wall. The familiar pain shoots up my arm.

“Atlas, it’s not how it looks, but it doesn’t matter. We’re separated, and we’re getting a divorce. Although it’s not finalized yet, what I do now is none of your concern.”

“None of my concern? Are you kidding me? I told you I’m not letting you go. I’m not signing those fucking papers. When you married me, it was for better or for worse.”

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