Silence Gives Consent

JAQUELINE

I made dinner like I did every night. Russ texted that there had been an emergency at the office and that he would be late.

Emergency my ass, I thought.

I needed to make sure that he didn’t railroad me in the divorce, because there definitely was going to be a divorce. I needed as much evidence as possible. I would make sure that asshole and his homewrecker, ho-bag would suffer.

I had just plated the food when I heard the garage door open. Taking a deep breath, I pushed all the sadness and rage from my mind. The moment the door opened, I plastered on a smile and looked the part of the happy homemaker, even though deep down I wanted to throat punch the asshole that walked in.

“Jack! I’m home, baby!” I heard Russ call out. I straightened and turned around.

“Hi, hon! I hope you’re hungry. I made steak and veggies,” I said, so sugary sweet that I thought I’d end up with a toothache.

“Yeah, I worked up an appetite today! All that work was exhausting,” Russ said as he walked over and kissed my cheek.

“Were you able to get my car serviced?” I asked. I was sure the answer was no, but I was going to make him sweat it out a little.

“Um, no, I wasn’t. They were backed up, and I got that emergency call. I’ll take it next week sometime. Sorry about that,” Russ said.

I noticed the way the tops of his ears turned red, and he rubbed the back of his neck. He was definitely lying. Had I just never paid enough attention before?

“That’s all right, honey. I can take it in. You’ve been working so hard. I don’t want you to have to do any more than you need to,” I said, sitting down beside him at the table. I caught a huge whiff of that same flowery perfume, and my smile dropped for a moment. I looked down at my plate so he wouldn’t see.

“Thanks, Jack. You’re the best!” he said and patted my head.

“You’re welcome, honey,” I said, stabbing a piece of steak with my fork.

***

The next day went by in a blur. Russ went to play golf with his dad while I stayed and chatted with Maxine. I may have detested the thought of that man ever touching me again, but I would never take that out on my in-laws.

“Jaqueline, I don’t know what we’d do without you. My son made the best decision of his life when he fell in love with you,” Maxine said, taking my hand.

I held her hand and felt guilty for not telling her what was going on with me and her son. But it was only for a second. I couldn’t live the rest of my life like this just because I didn’t want to hurt Rich and Maxine.

Russ was their only child. Who would want to learn that their son had been having an affair? I didn’t want to be the one to break their trust in Russ.

“Thank you for that, Maxine. It’s always good to hear something kind,” I said, patting her hand. I heard the front door open. Russ and Rich entered, laughing.

The two of them seemed to have had a great time while they were out. They walked into the room, and I marveled at how much they favored each other. Both tall, dark-haired, and devilishly handsome.

Russ looked at me, and for a moment, I almost forgot about his indiscretion. The look in his eyes was loving, mixed with a little something else. Maybe guilt? Russ had never had a reason to look at me with guilt before, but now that I knew about the affair, I couldn’t be sure of anything.

Russ gave me a half-hearted smile. The smile didn’t reach his eyes. I could feel the fakeness of it all. He didn’t want to smile at me, either out of guilt or not wanting me anymore.

***

When we finally got home, I headed upstairs to get changed into something more comfortable. I’d been strung tighter than a violin, and I needed as much comfort as possible. I walked back down and heard Russ whispering on his phone.

“I was just with you all day yesterday. If I don’t spend some time with her, she’s going to be suspicious.” I could hear him pacing. “No, of course I still love you! I told you, I’m trying to work it out to where she doesn’t get anything.”

So, that asshole wasn’t only cheating on me but planning to leave me with nothing? If I hadn’t already been determined to leave his ass, I sure as hell was after hearing that. A woman scorned was nothing to play around with, and I was pretty damn scorned. A new side of me had woken up.

“Russ, honey, would you like a glass of wine?” I shouted as I headed into the kitchen. I heard him moving around and whispering before he answered me.

“Sure, honey. I’ll be there in a second,” he called out.

I heard whispering again. I scoffed as I pulled out two glasses and poured both half full. Russ was playing a dangerous game, and now that my blinders were off, I was going to be a tough opponent. I mentally laughed at how silly all of this was, but I could play the game.

The man I was living with wasn’t who I thought he was, nor was he as smart as I thought he was. Sure, I hadn’t picked up on any of this until now, but anyone with a brain knew you didn’t put yourself in a position of possibly being revealed. I heard his footsteps as he headed into the kitchen and smiled.

By this time next week, everything would change. I would be free from all of this and moving forward with my life. I would never have to go through something this awful again.