It was when she saw "Roni" that her curiosity turned to anger. The number was local. There was no last name, but she knew. Unable to stop herself, she clicked through the backup, looking through saved text messages and emails until she hit the jackpot.
She read for over two hours. There were that many messages between the lovers. She had naively thought her husband had been attracted to Veronica at the party back in January. What a fool she'd been. The emails went back at least six months before that. Love emails. Sexting. Photos. Texts of where to meet. Each one cut her wounds open just a bit wider – a bit deeper.
The emails where they discussed how clueless both Nick and Cali were hurt the worst. They had ridiculed their spouses often for being so naive and trusting. After all of the tears she had shed for Kevin, these personal messages felt like his final betrayal. For the first time she truly hated him. She hoped they were happily rotting in hell together.
A wave of nausea hit and Cali found herself puking up her dinner into the nearby trashcan. As she was throwing up, a sharp pain cramped and she found herself running to the bathroom. She finished being sick for the second time before sitting.
The sight of the deep red blood in her underwear shouldn't have surprised her. She had intellectually known there was no possibility of being pregnant. Yet, she had been a week late in starting her period and there was a small part of her that had begun to wonder if she might have a baby growing inside her after all. Her brain knew this was for the best, but finding the evidence of Kevin's long time infidelity combined with the arrival of her period was the final straw.
Cali ripped the clothes off her body as fast as she could. She started the shower, getting in while the water was ice cold. She welcomed the shocking temperature. The harshness woke her from the veil of naivety she had been living under. As the water warmed and finally turned to steaming hot, Cali welcomed the pain of the burn where the water met skin. She allowed the bite of heat to punish her for her stupidity. She sat on the floor of the shower, hugging her knees to her chest, rocking until the water began to cool.
Cali relocated to the bedroom, stopping only to grab a bottle of vodka and orange juice. For the next hour, she drank enough alcohol to dull the pain. When it wasn't enough, she took a pair of scissors to their walk-in closet and shredded several of Kevin's most expensive suits and ties. It felt good to see the evidence of her fury, piled in the center of the oversized closet. She curled up in the middle of the pile.
She felt utterly alone. No one understood what she was going through. Not really. Everyone tried to be nice, but her in-laws had deserted her. It was as if they somehow held her responsible for the loss of their son. She was estranged from her dad. Her mom was gone. Lucy tried to help, but only knew how to hate Kevin.
It was in that moment she thought of Nicholas Mikos. She hadn't thought of him since the funeral. She wondered what Nick was doing right that minute. How was he dealing with his wife's betrayal? At least he had his daughter to cling to. A new regret that she wasn't pregnant invaded. It would have been nice to have a blessed occasion like a baby to wipe away some of her sorrows.
The vodka had done its job. Cali drifted in and out of a fitful sleep while curled up on the floor of the closet. It was after midnight when she found herself awake again, unable to get back to sleep. There was only a long, lonely night to look forward to.
Cali wasn't sure of her plan until she found herself sitting behind Kevin's large desk again. She moved on autopilot as she looked up Nicholas Mikos in her husband's contact list. It wasn't surprising to find it there. They had worked together, after all. She had had just enough vodka to dull her decision-making ability.
It rang several times before a masculine voice answered. "Hello?"
What the hell was she doing? She was about to hang up when he spoke again. "Who's there? If this is another reporter looking for a story, fuck off."
He sounded so angry. He deserved to be angry. So did she.
"Nick?" Her voice was barely a whisper, but he heard.
"Cali?"
She held her breath. Unsure if she should answer.
He persisted "Cali? Is that you?"
"Yes." She'd been so angry before the call. Why were tears prickling her eyes at the sound of his voice?
He sighed. "I'm glad you called. I've wanted to call you a few times, but didn't have your number. And I didn't know... well... you know."
"Unfortunately, I do know." They let a long awkward silence stretch out.
He broke the quiet. "I've been worried about you. How are you?"
"Probably about the same as you."
"That bad, eh?" He tried to laugh it off. It sounded strained. They fell into silence again.
"I'm sorry. I don't know why I called. I'll let you go." Cali felt foolish for calling.
"Please. Don't go." She heard a familiar desperation in his voice.
"What do you want me to say, Nick? Anything we talk about is only going to make us feel worse."
"I don't think so. I hate it, but you're the only person who could possibly understand what it's like. You're a beautiful, smart woman. You didn't deserve this to happen to you, Cali. I want you to know that."
The tears she had been holding back fell fast. She hadn't thought he could say anything to make her feel better, but she'd been wrong. He had somehow known exactly what she'd needed to hear.
"Thank you for saying that. You certainly didn't deserve this either. No one knows what to say, you know? They either avoid me or try to cheer me up. They don't know that maybe I need to wallow for a while, you know?"
"Boy, do I ever. I finally went into the office today and it was brutal."
"I went back to school today, too. Brutal is the perfect word."
"Is that why you called?"
Cali debated lying, but then she'd be doing to him what his wife had done. As ugly as the truth was, he deserved to hear it. "No. Not really."
"Well, I'm glad you did."
"I bet you wouldn't be if you'd found what I found tonight."
He hesitated. He must have been deciding if he wanted her to continue. "Maybe you should tell me and let me be the judge of that."
"There will be no unhearing the words once they're said." She tried to warn him.
"Just like there will be no bringing them back."
"Would you want to, even if you could?" Cali asked curiously.
She started to wonder if the call had dropped. He finally answered. "Would it make me a monster if I said no?"
"No, it makes you human. I might have said yes yesterday, but not tonight. Tonight, I hope they are rotting in hell."
Nick whistled the surprised kind of whistle. "That doesn't sound good. Maybe you're right. Maybe I don't want to know." He hesitated. "Like it or not, I need to know. I'm tired of the secrets – of the lies. I found a couple credit cards I didn't know about last week. A nice little fifteen-thousand dollar fuck-you courtesy of my wife from her grave."
Cali hadn't even dived into their personal finances yet. She hoped she didn't have more surprises waiting for her there. "Don't scare me. I haven't even braved the finance crap yet. I've just been paying a few bills I know about. I'm dreading it. I know I'll have to tackle it soon."
"So if not finances, what did you find?"
"You're sure?"
"Positive."
She took a deep breath. "How long do you think they were seeing each other?"
He answered quickly. "Well since they met at the holiday..." his voice trailed off. He never finished his thought.
"Try a bit longer."
"God-damn her. How do you know?"
"I finally logged onto his personal laptop. He had a backup file of his phone. It was how I got to his contact list. Do you have her cell phone? If you do, you could find it all too."
"No. I never found her phone. I assumed she had it with her and it was destroyed in the accident."
"How much do you want to know?"
"I want it all. The trut
h for once."
"I found stuff going back at least six months. I'm not sure how it started, but I found emails, texts, photos... you name it. They communicated almost daily."
She had expected him to be angry. She hadn't expected silence. "Nick? Are you still there?" When he didn't reply, she tried again. "I'm so sorry. I never should have told you."
She heard the barely contained rage in his voice. "You did the right thing, Cali. I just don't know if I can believe it. I mean... not that you... I'd just like to think I would have noticed something like that, you know?"
It was Cali's turn to get angry. "You better not be insinuating that I'm lying to you. I'm not Veronica. Not every woman is a lying bitch."
He sighed. "I wasn't trying to imply you were lying. It's just so... I didn't think it could get any worse. I was wrong."
"Honestly, as much as I hurt now, I think this will help me get over him sooner. Kevin was a bit like Jekyll and Hyde. He could be so charming when he wanted to be. The next minute he could call me every condescending name he could think of while..." She cut herself off. She wasn't ready to share how abusive Kevin could get.
"While he what, Cali?"
"Nothing. It's not important now. I'm sorry if this news hurt you, but I just know if you'd found this evidence, I would have wanted you to share it with me, you know? I'm so tired of his lies."
"Cali, would you consider having dinner with me some time? Before you think I'm coming on to you or something, I'm not. I'd just like to talk with you more. I think we could help each other through some of the shit, you know? Maybe you could bring his laptop along and let me see some of the messages?"
"I don't think that's a good idea, Nick."
"Which part? Dinner or the laptop?"
"Both."
"Please. Friday night. I can have Andi sleep over at her best friend's house."
"Let me think about it, okay?"
"Okay. Is this your cell phone you called from?"
"Yes."
"Then we'll talk later in the week. Think about it, Cali. It would mean a lot to me."
"Goodnight, Nick."
"Goodnight, Cali. Try to get some sleep."
Chapter Four
"Would you like another drink, sir?" The portly bartender reached to take away his empty rock glass. Nick wanted another to calm his nerves.
"Not yet. I'll wait for my companion to join me first, thanks."
He had arrived early at the Greek restaurant in his old haunting ground near Georgetown. He'd been relieved when Cali had texted him the night before, agreeing to meet for dinner. He'd begun to worry she wouldn't feel up to it. Not that he blamed her. A part of him dreaded learning more about how Veronica had made a fool out of him, but he'd begun to think of tonight as the figurative ripping off of the band-aid. It may hurt worse for a bit, but it would help heal the wounds she'd inflicted faster. That was the plan, anyway.
Calista had asked him to pick a place to meet. He'd chosen Georgio's for two reasons. One, because Veronica had hated Greek food and refused to eat there. More importantly, it would be easier for the two of them to disappear into the sea of people on a Friday night in a college neighborhood. He didn't want to risk meeting anywhere near either of their homes on the off chance they might be seen by someone either of them knew.
"Nick?"
He'd been lost in thought and missed her arrival. Nick swung around to greet her. He had forgotten how beautiful she was with her silky black hair, amber-brown eyes, olive skin, and hourglass figure. He couldn't believe what a stupid fuck Kevin Bennett had been to cheat on someone like Cali.
Their eyes locked as they silently sized each other up. The surrounding candlelight reflected off the tears that glistened in her eyes. She looked as fragile as he'd been feeling the last four weeks. It was odd that a strength he hadn't felt minutes before surged through him, urging Nick to protect the woman standing before him from any more harm.
A tear spilled over and trickled down her cheek. He longed to reach out and swipe it away. Her eyes widened in surprise when he gently cupped her face. It gave her the courage to rush into his arms. She hugged him with all her strength.
A cocktail of emotions rushed Nicholas as he held her. It only got worse as her tears turned to sobs. He should have picked a more private place to meet. Restaurant patrons were watching them.
Nick stroked her long, black hair as he rocked her gently in his arms. "Shhh, Cali. It may not feel like it, but it's gonna be okay."
He took the handkerchief out he had been clairvoyant enough to bring along. After she'd calmed, he let her dry her eyes before he took her by her elbow and escorted her toward the restaurant portion of the establishment. He had made reservations and they were ushered to a private booth at the back of the dimly lit restaurant.
Once seated, an awkward silence stretched between them. Nick tried to put her at ease. "Thanks again for calling me, Cali. I think you're the first person I've talked to since... the accident... that understands what I'm going through."
He saw her exhale as if she'd been holding her breath. "I'm relieved. I wasn't sure if you'd be angry for... well... you know."
"I may be angry about a lot of things, Cali, but I promise you that you're the last person that anger is directed at. Unfortunately, the two people who deserve my hatred can't be here. I don't blame you for marrying an asshole."
Nick regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth. He may have hated Kevin Bennett, but Cali was still mourning her loss. She didn't need to be put in a position to defend him. Cali responded before he could apologize.
"I don't blame you for hating him. Most days I hate him too. I can't say I think of your wife kindly either." She tried to smile, but it came off more as a grimace.
Nick paused before admitting what he'd been struggling with. "I've been trying to blame Kevin for corrupting her, but it isn't working. Deep down, I knew she wasn't happy anymore. I was never ambitious enough for Veronica. She was furious that I wasn't made associate partner yet. I don't even think it was only about the money, but more about the prestige. I've had a lot of time to reflect on it and I think it was so important to her that she gave up on me and moved on to Kevin, knowing that as a Bennett he would certainly be a partner soon."
He watched for her reaction. She didn't look surprised. "I wish I knew if he'd planned on leaving me for her. He was furious..." She stopped abruptly as she weighed her next words. "It's not important now, I guess."
He pressed her. "What could he possibly be angry at you about?"
"Let's just say you aren't the only one who disappointed their spouse."
"Well then he was a bigger idiot than I even gave him credit for."
After their waitress took their order and brought them their drinks and appetizer of flaming cheese, Nick broached the subject that had brought them together. "Did you bring the laptop with the backup?"
Cali hesitated. "You're sure? I've read more. Trust me when I say it's gonna hurt to read it."
"I don't have a choice. I need to know so I can move on."
Cali reached into her purse and pulled out a small USB thumb drive. She slowly pushed it across the table between them. Nick extended his hand and for a few brief seconds, their fingers brushed.
He despised the circumstances that brought them to this place and time together, but in that minute he felt a bond with the fragile woman sitting across the table. Even if they never saw each other again after tonight, they would forever be linked in an intimate way having been put through the same ordeal by their spouses. Kevin and Veronica had set things in motion and Nick and Cali were going along for the ride.
Calista's words brought him back to the present. "There was too much to read here in the restaurant and anyway, you'll want to read it when you are alone."
"I'll have to read it when Andi is gone then."
"How is your daughter doing with her loss?" Her look of concern was genuine.
"Honestly, Andi is doing remarkably well. I'm no
t sure if you picked up on it in our short time together at the holiday party, but Roni didn't enjoy being a mother. Not really. Andrea was less dependent on her mom than I realized."
"Did you make her get pregnant?" Calista's face turned a bright red. "I'm so sorry. That was a rude question. It's none of my business."
Nick tried to put her mind at ease. "Don't worry about hurting my feelings, Cali. You can ask me anything, and while I was definitely thrilled when we had Andrea, it was a shock. See, Roni and I had broken up some time before. She showed up on my doorstep when Andi was a few weeks old with a sob story about not being able to abort my baby because she was still in love with me. Even now, knowing how things turned out, I don't regret it. Roni and I may have had our problems, but making Andrea was the one thing we did right."
"You're lucky to have her. The house is so empty now."
"Does your family live nearby? Are they helping out?"
A new sadness moved into Cali's eyes. "I grew up in Baltimore. My parents moved over from Greece a few years before I was born. They opened a restaurant in Greektown and so I grew up working there. I had always planned on sticking with the family business but then... well... my parents and I were close until I was in high school." She paused as if she was figuring out what she wanted to share. "Then we hit kind of a rough patch and grew apart. I got a great scholarship and left for college. I hoped the time apart would help us heal, but then mom died suddenly when I was a freshman in college. Dad has been a hot-mess ever since. We've remained pretty estranged. He came to Kevin's funeral, but I don't expect to hear from him again anytime soon"
Twist (A BDSM & Romantic Erotica Boxed Set) Page 30
