It Takes Two by Emily Harvale

Author:Emily Harvale [Harvale, Emily]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Crescent Gate Publishing
Published: 2017-07-18T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

Tabitha Warner looked at her naked reflection in the mirror and grimaced. Staring back at her with red rimmed eyes framed by enough crow’s feet to fill a scene from an Alfred Hitchcock movie, was a woman she didn’t recognise.

The woman who was once slim with pert breasts and a trim waist, a natural blonde, who, so many people said, was beautiful, had vanished without a trace. In her place stood someone roughly the same height, although perhaps a centimetre or two had also disappeared, or found its way to her now tubby waist – with sagging breasts, and dyed blonde hair to cover the natural grey. Now people lied when they said she was beautiful.

Her husband had been the biggest liar of all. He had told her he still found her beautiful, and yet he had hardly looked her way for some considerable time. Sexy, yet he had stopped touching her months ago. The only person he wanted to spend his life with, yet most of their time they spent apart. Told her he loved her, yet had only said it when she prompted.

It never used to be this way. Not so very long ago she would catch him watching her and smiling lovingly. Would tingle as he brushed past her, or took her hand in his, or wrapped his arms around her, or kissed her and made love to her. Most hours away from work, they had spent together, sometimes just reading, or cooking, or walking, or watching television, but always close.

Now they were never in the same room unless they were arguing. And she couldn’t remember the last time he had said the words she longed to hear: ‘I love you.’ Three words far stronger than bricks, to build bridges. Far more powerful than medicine, to heal wounds. More lavish than the most expensive gift. Three words he wouldn’t say unless she asked him, so eventually she stopped asking.

How had things come to this? How had bitterness and hatred replaced happiness and love? Had he stopped loving her before he met the younger woman? Or had he met the woman first and let his love for his wife simply slip away?

What was the point in going over this? She should have asked him many months ago. Instead, she had withdrawn from him, not wanting to be the fool, giving and displaying love and affection where it clearly wasn’t wanted. She had found comfort in food. Comfort in wine, too. When she mixed them both together she could almost pretend to be happy.

Attack was the best form of defence. She had learnt that in her early years in law. And she was good at attacking. But others had been caught in the crossfire: her daughter, Ali and her mother, Gertie.

She had said she would try to stop. The truth was she didn’t know how. All she really wanted was to love and be loved. Was that too much to ask? Was it too late for love? What she had with Alejandro wasn’t love.

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