My Husband's Affair by Ruth Heald

Author:Ruth Heald [Heald, Ruth]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-04-10T00:00:00+00:00

THIRTY-THREE

Jen felt a sense of relief when the weekend came around and she got in the car with the kids and drove down the motorway to the hotel by the theme park where they were spending the weekend with Natasha and Matilda. She was acting her heart out pretending to Rob everything was fine, but her anger about his affair was eating her up inside. She hoped it had stopped now, that her discovery of the email had scared him enough into ending it. He was certainly spending less time at late-night dinners. But she couldn’t be sure it was over. She hated the thought of him with another woman.

She knew she had to be pragmatic. If it wasn’t for their money issues she’d have split up with Rob already. As it was, he’d be out of her life soon enough, when he disappeared in the Med. She just had to be patient. It was for the best that she didn’t let her anger boil over, that she acted like everything was normal between them and focused on their plan.

When Jen arrived at the hotel, Natasha greeted her with a hug, her eyes sparkling. Lottie and Jack ran past her to where Matilda was watching the television, Ruby toddling after them.

‘You look well,’ Jen said, taking in her shiny hair and glowing skin.

‘You do, too,’ Natasha said quickly. Jen knew she was lying. Her carefully applied make-up couldn’t hide the bags under her eyes. Her mother’s pills helped her to sleep, but they made getting up in the morning like pulling herself out of a fog, and she never felt truly rested.

‘I know I’m not looking my best at the moment. It’s the stress. But it’s lovely to get away.’ It felt a bit like coming home when she saw Natasha. She always felt safe with her, like she could be completely herself.

‘Sometimes you need to get away to have space to think,’ Natasha said. ‘And we’re going to have a brilliant day all together. Honestly, who needs men?’

Jen laughed. She couldn’t help thinking how carefree and relaxed Natasha seemed. She was proof that people could bounce back after divorce, be happy again.

Jen had been anxious about taking her three kids to the theme park, but it was easy with Natasha by her side. The kids got on well, and there was only minimal fighting. And Natasha and Jen split the workload, Natasha playing with Ruby while Jen took the others on the rides, and then swapping round again. They seemed more like a team than she and Rob had ever been.

Jen loved seeing Lottie and Jack let go and enjoy themselves. Lottie’s party hadn’t made much of a difference for her friendships with the other girls in her class, and she was becoming even more withdrawn. Jen wondered how much of the tension in her parents’ marriage she’d picked up on. At least now she was having a good time.

‘I’m so glad you could come with us,’ Natasha said

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