B00BR2BOUU EBOK (36 page)

“Understand this, my love. I am NEVER anxious for you to
leave, EVER. And if you feel that way, I’m sorry. It’s just, I desperately need
to speak to Lucy, which is exactly what I am going to do as soon as these doors
close.” He stepped backwards out of the elevator, hit the button and at the
same time blew me a kiss.

“I love you, Ms. Summers.”

“I love you too, Mr. Clark,” I responded quickly before the
door closed, and it was in that moment that I realised by being able to say it
so easily that Rick really did not stand a chance.

CHAPTER
TWENTY-FIVE

Pulling into our driveway quietly or inconspicuously was
nearly impossible behind the wheel of my Charger.
My Charger, Oh my God,
it’s really mine.
As I stepped out and looked at the stunning purple beast,
I couldn’t help but smile at the personalised number plates Bryce had arranged
and put on the car for me. Nate, Charli and Rick all came out through the front
door. My smile faded slightly when I saw the look on Rick’s face when he
spotted the Charger and the fact the number plates said ‘Alexis’. He knew where
I had been, and it drained the colour from his face.

“Mum, this car has your name on it! Is it yours?” Nate
opened the door and had a look inside.

“Yep.”

“Cool, where did you get it from.”

“Bry...Um, Mr. Clark. It was my prize for beating him in a
race.” I smiled to myself, remembering my sweet victory. Rick turned around and
went back inside the house.

“Come on, kids, let’s go inside.”

“I love the colour, Mum, purple is my favourite.”
And so
is pink, yellow, gold, and silver, Charli Bear.
The absence of Rick from
the kitchen, lounge, and dining room indicated he was in our room waiting for
me to explain.
I don’t have to explain anything to him.
I walked into
our room and he was standing by the window looking out at the car with a
furious and disgusted look on his face.

“You were with him last night.”

I didn’t lie to him. “Yes. The girls and I went out for
drinks and dancing at Opals and I ended up staying with Bryce.” He turned to me
and glared. “What Rick? I told you that we had separated, I told you that I was
now single, and I told you that if I wanted to date either him or you I would.”

“So, the first chance you get, you go there and fuck him
again.”

“I beg your pardon? Don’t speak to me like that. On second
thoughts, maybe you should go, Rick.” I went to leave the room, but he grabbed
my hand and wrenched it back.

“I’m sorry, Lex, I didn’t mean to yell at you like that. It
just sickens me that you are being intimate with another man.”

“Well it sickened me that you sold me out for money, so I
guess we are even.” I took back my hand, walked around to the other side of the
bed and kicked off my shoes.

“I’m sorry, Babe. Please give me a chance, the kids and I
have a special surprise for you.” He came round to my side of the bed and
wrapped his arms around me. I literally went rigid. I couldn’t help it, maybe
it was because he had just had a go at me, or maybe it was because I know
longer felt anything for him, I wasn’t sure. He pulled back and shook me loose.
“Come on, Lex, loosen up. You’re going to enjoy our date.” I smiled briefly.
“Now put something nice on and meet me out in the dining room.”

“Put something nice on? Where are we going?”

“Nowhere.”

“Then why do I have to put something nice on.”

“Because we are on a date. Work with me, Babe, this was your
idea. Remember?”
Fuck, don’t I know it.

“Okay, I’ll put on a dress.”

“Good.” He scooted off down the hall and disappeared into
the spare room.
Fuck, what have I gotten myself into? I don’t think I want
to date Rick anymore
. One minute he kissed me like he never kissed me
before, and the next he was hurling hate at me
.
I looked down the hall to
the spare room, at the door he was behind, then down to my arms where he had
just grabbed me. When he touched me there was just nothing there I had felt
nothing, it paled in comparison to Bryce. Rick had only just seconds ago
embraced me, but I didn’t feel the lingering effects of his touch, instead my
skin still buzzed with thoughts of Bryce, when he had consumed every inch of
it, and that was hours ago.

I rifled through my wardrobe with no enthusiasm to dress up
for this date.
Alexis, make an effort. You asked for this from him, and he
is doing it. The least you can do is make an effort and try and enjoy what
could be your last romantic meal together.
I sighed but agreed with my
annoying ‘mini me’ conscience who always invisibly sat on my shoulder. I begrudgingly
pulled out my black plain slip dress which sat just above my knee, and sported
a split to about half way up my thigh. I couldn’t be bothered doing my hair so
ran the brush through it quickly, and put on a little lip gloss and mascara. I
took a deep breath, practiced my smile in front of the mirror for a second, and
then left the room.

***

When I walked into the dining area Charli was dressed in her
best party dress, she cleared her throat and began her act.

“Mrs Summers, your table is just over here.” She held her
arm up, suggesting me to link mine around it. I smiled, and scrunched up my
face at Charli’s cuteness. She opened her eyes wide and tilted her head,
indicating I needed to take her seriously, so I swallowed my humour and linked
my arm around hers.

“Thank you, Ma’am.” Charli escorted me to a table that was
set with my ‘best’ dinner set, two candles, two Gerberas and wine glasses. She
pulled out my chair and pointed to it. “Please take a seat.”

 “Thank you.” I sat, and she tried desperately to push me
in. I whispered to her, “It’s okay, I’ll do it.”

She whispered back, “Cool, thanks.”

Nate rounded the corner in black slacks and a plain white
shirt, he had even put some hair gel through his hair and combed it back. My
heart started to thump heavily in my chest, these two incredibly adorable
children were revelling in this charade for their mother, it was just so sweet.
Nate walked into the kitchen, opened one of the drawers and pulled a tea towel
out. He meticulously draped it over his left arm and then carried a bottle of
wine over to the table, displaying it to me like they would do in a restaurant.

“Would you care for a glass of wine, Mum...I mean, Mrs.
Summers?” He closed his eyes and shook his head, embarrassed at breaking
character. I couldn’t help but giggle, and reassuringly squeezed his leg.

“Yes, please, Sir.” I watched a look of shock and horror
pass his face and nearly panicked myself.
Shit, what did I do?
But, then
his eyebrows lifted, displaying he had an epiphany, and then he ran out of the
room.

“I’ll be right back,” he called out behind him. I heard the
noise of a cork popping and watched Nate enter the room again looking relieve,
holding a now open bottle.
Oh you two gorgeous, gorgeous little loves of my
life, I just want to break character and hug you both.
Nate poured wine
steadily into the two glasses on the table, and Charli approached with a
smugness about her.

“Mr Summers will be joining you shortly.” She nodded, curtsied,
then walked back into the kitchen. I laughed and placed my head in my hands,
hiding my amusement in fear of offending them. Suddenly, there was a hand on
mine pulling them away from my face.

“May I have this dance, Mrs. Summers.” Rick was standing
above me in a tuxedo, grinning, but trying to keep an air of seriousness about
him.

“Sure.” I said looking around and listening for any sign of
music. He led me to the lounge where he had cleared the space and created a
makeshift dance floor. He picked up the remote control for the stereo and
pressed play. Brian Adams filled the room, and a memory of our first dance as
husband and wife popped into my head. He firmly pulled me into his arms, and we
began to dance to ‘Everything I do (I do it for you).’

Rick and I had taken dance lessons before our wedding so
that our first dance together would be special. Rick was exceptionally good at
dancing, so we continued to go to the lessons and classes for a couple of years
after we got married. When I had Nate, the lessons had stopped. I’m not quite
sure why we never went back to them, we just didn’t. I put my head on his
shoulder, not saying a word while we danced. It was kind of strange, nice, but
strange. For me it felt a little like closure, it was our first dance as husband
and wife, and it would more than likely be our last dance as husband and wife
too.

I lifted my head from his shoulder as we twirled around the
room. There were pictures on the walls of us on our wedding day looking happy, which
we had been. When he had placed my wedding band on my finger and promised to
‘love and cherish me for as long as we both shall live’, I had believed he
would. And when I had put his wedding band onto his finger and promised to
‘love and be faithful for as long as we both shall live’, I believed I would too.
Now, I’m standing there in his arms, dancing like we had done twelve years ago,
after just pledging those vows to each other, and I realised those vows have
now been broken. We had broken them and we had taken them for granted.

A tear rolled down my cheek just as Nate and Charli peeped
around the corner. Nate’s smile faded to confusion, but it was Charli as always
who opened her mouth.

“Mum, why are you crying?” Rick pulled back from me to see
for himself. He looked concerned and unsure if it was a happy or sad tear. I
didn’t want to ruin the date that the kids and him had planned for me, so I
lied.

“It’s a happy tear, ratbag.” Rick and Charli smiled at me,
but it was Nate who showed a small sign of hesitation. The music on the stereo
changed, and Elvis Presley filled the room. Rick stood back and threw his hands
in the air, pointed his toes to the ground, then as if he were born to do it, he
flicked his knees into each other simultaneously as he swung his hips from side
to side. Charli started clapping and made herself comfortable on the couch. I
pulled Nate over to me, bear hugged him and whispered into his ear. “I’m okay,
little man.” He squeezed my arm then we watched his Dad do what his Dad did
best, dance!

Rick paraded his Jailhouse Rock moves for a few seconds more
than grabbed my hand. Nate quickly jumped out of the way so that Rick and I
could jive around the lounge. He really was a fantastic dancer, I’d almost
forgotten. We hadn’t danced together for years, I think the last time was at
his brother’s wedding just after Charli was born. He spun me around and pulled
me back to him, and repeated this until the song finished. I sat on the arm of
the couch catching my breath and laughed.

“You’ve still got the moves, Rick.”

“You’re not too bad yourself, Lex.”

“Ha, that’s the most exercise I’ve had in a long time, I’m
stuffed.”
The non-sexual kind anyway.

“Well, I hope you’ve worked up an appetite then, come on,”
He took my hand and led me to the table, where unlike Charli Bear, he
successfully pushed in my chair. He disappeared into the kitchen with the kids,
leaving me alone to sit in a state of confusion and emotional ruin. I’d gone
from anger when I first came home, to reluctance and unwillingness, to closure
and sadness, then to recognition, reminiscing, and fun. Now, I was sitting there
clouded, muddled, and in complete disarray as to how I was going to break his
heart and end our marriage for good. The kids walked out of the kitchen and
into the family room, each with a bowl of pasta. Rick followed behind with two
plates of Veal Scallopini and vegetables. “Your favourite, Lex.” I looked at
the plate, it was my favourite. I loved Rick’s Veal Scallopini.

“Thanks, that’s sweet.” I forked a medallion of veal and
some mushrooms and popped them into my mouth. It was delicious, but I couldn’t
help wonder to myself what Bryce’s Veal Scallopini would taste like in
comparison to this.
Alexis, you’re a bitch.
“Yum, it’s beautiful, Rick.”

“No, you’re beautiful, Lex.”  I forced a smiled then looked
back at my plate. He reached over and grabbed my hand. “I fucked up big time. I
noticed early on you were forming an interest in Bryce, and instead of
persuading you otherwise and showing you how much I loved you, I ignored it. I
let you down. You are smart, talented, beautiful, and funny. You are a
wonderful mother and wife. You’re sweet, shy, and bashful, but you also have a
raw don’t mess with you side. You’re perfect, Lex, and I don’t blame Bryce for
falling in love with you. Instead, I blame myself for encouraging it instead of
stopping it.” I let go of his hand and spoke as calmly as I could.

“Rick, I don’t think you could’ve stopped it even if you had
tried. Bryce and I share a connection that I cannot explain. I felt it the first
day I bumped into him, before I even knew who he was. Listen, you can’t blame
yourself for ‘letting’ this happen, because you didn’t—it just happened on its
own. Could you have stopped us from taking it any further when we did? Well,
yes, but you chose to risk it in order to profit, and that is not something you
can take back. Honestly though, Rick, and this might hurt you, and if it does
I’m truly sorry, but Bryce and I were inevitable, and we still are.” I let out
a breath, knowing I had just ended our marriage for good. He didn’t say
anything, he just sat there letting it sink in, then finally after a few
minutes of silence he broke down and started to sob. It hit me hard, I had
never seen Rick shed a tear, let alone sob. It just wasn’t him; he didn’t get
emotionally distraught over anything.

I was about to get up and offer what relief I could when he
spoke through his grief.

“Alexis, I don’t deserve you anyway, I never have.”

“Rick I...”

“No, let me finish, because if I don’t say it all now, I
probably never will and you deserve better than that. Our family deserves
better than that. You need to know, though, that I love you. I always have and
I always will, and I love those two kids in there more than anything.” He
pointed to the family room. “I don’t want to lose them as well, Lex, I’ve
already lost you. Please don’t take them away from me. Promise you’ll never
take them away from me.”