Secret Lives of Cheating Wives by Curtis Bunn

Author:Curtis Bunn
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Strebor Books

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CLOSING IN

JUANITA

Maurice grew increasingly concerned about Juanita’s behavior. She kept her cell phone closer to her and regularly used it for texting purposes. She seldom was available during the day when he called her at work. And she had stopped taking the occasional ride into the office with her husband.

He had a golf trip scheduled for a weekend at Pinehurst in North Carolina, but was reluctant to go. He was suspicious of his wife’s fidelity, and it left him feeling sick to his stomach.

He was not sure how to deal with his turmoil. If he addressed it with Juanita and was wrong, she would be aghast. If he were right, he’d be crestfallen. Either option made him more convinced to say nothing and to observe more closely than ever.

It ate him up that he had no one to share his uncertainty. His family adored Juanita and would think he was paranoid. . . or worse. Her family praised her existence in every way. He could not tell his friends—it would be humiliating to tell them he thought his wife was cheating on him.

Finally, though, after three vodka and tonics and two beers, he woke up Juanita one Saturday night. He surmised that the element of surprise would catch her off guard and reveal something. He could not go on any longer feeling so uneasy.

“You sleep?” he said as he shook her out of her slumber.

“Huh? What’s wrong?”

She could smell the alcohol on his breath.

“Are you cheating on me?”

Juanita was prepared for that question. She had rehearsed her answer to the inevitable question more than a dozen times.

“Yes,” she said. “I have two boyfriends. I see one as you’re eating dinner that I cooked after I leave work and come straight home. The other one I see in the church basement, during Sunday School.”

Maurice did not expect that answer. He expected her to be outraged at the accusation.

“Now can I go back to sleep? I’m meeting my boyfriend at the playground with the kids tomorrow. I need my rest.”

She plopped her head back down on her pillow and turned her back to Maurice, who felt so silly that he got up and left the bedroom.

Juanita lay there with her heart pumping. She expected him to question her at some point, but the reality of it frightened her. She also knew that the questioning was not over. Maurice, when sober, would explain his question.

She decided then to take the lead, to bring up the subject in the morning, to put Maurice on the defensive. She thought of many ways to protect her secret. She did not consider leaving Brandon alone.

So after breakfast, she got the kids settled in their room in front of their Xbox, and addressed her husband.

“Can you explain why you insulted me last night?” Juanita asked. She felt like an actress. “I mean, really Maurice.”

“Well, first off, I’m sorry,” he said. “I wasn’t trying to insult you. I was trying to get some answers.”

“You question my faithfulness?”

“I don’t. I had questions because you don’t seem to be yourself.

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