Waiting for Butterflies by Karen Sargent

Author:Karen Sargent
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Walrus Publishing
Published: 2017-06-30T16:00:00+00:00

“Oh, Maggie. I am so sorry.” Agony filled Sam’s broken voice. “I never wanted you to know.”

Maggie sat on the leather ottoman, facing him, listening to a confession she didn’t want to hear. She hadn’t been certain her husband had been unfaithful, so she chose to bury her suspicion, forced herself to forget it. But now her means of surviving that painful period betrayed her as the truth forced her denial to the surface. Rage pierced her, bringing into perfect focus all the clues that had once seemed so blurred. She thought it strange when a new detective joined the division, yet Sam rarely mentioned it. The topic usually consumed his conversation for weeks as he talked about training, the new guy’s potential, rookie mistakes. And the few times she asked about the new guy, Sam referred only to “Shaw,” and his comments were always brief.

Then, a couple months later, Maggie stopped by the department unannounced and found Sam reclined in his chair behind the desk, an attractive young female facing him, leaning against his desk, too close. Her caramel hair, swept over her left shoulder, led Maggie’s eyes to the opening in her blouse that begged for one more button to be fastened. Guilt surfaced on Sam’s face when he saw Maggie. She recalled their heated discussion that evening, and finally, Sam convincing her she was acting like a jealous teenager. In hindsight, Maggie was sure he told a version of the truth. Nothing had happened between Sam and Nikki Shaw—yet. But now she was certain she knew when it did, a month later when Sam flew to Atlanta for a conference. Maggie suspected he wasn’t going alone. She journaled about her fears and that she wouldn’t force Sam to choose. Was she being noble, or was she a coward? Should she fight for a man who desired another woman?

But Maggie thought she didn’t have to fight, because two days later Sam returned from Atlanta a different man. Being a father became important to him, and he adored Maggie like he hadn’t in years. She was convinced that if a rendezvous had been planned, he didn’t go through with it. She also convinced herself that if he had, she was partly to blame. On her own list of commitments, her marriage had fallen to the bottom. Her growing business required nurturing, as did the girls. Maggie had a house to manage and commitments at church. She had no time for herself and less time for her marriage, which had settled into an exhausting routine that Maggie accepted as normal. So, when she pictured the striking Nikki Shaw leaning against her husband’s desk, sending signals that Maggie no longer sent, how could she blame him for being tempted? She couldn’t.

But now she could blame him for acting on the temptation. As Maggie exhumed the past, it didn’t lessen the shock of sitting in front of Sam, listening to his confession. The betrayal she once feared, that she had exiled to a desolate place in her heart, threatened to rise from the darkness.

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