Sixty-one

"Move," he says in a clipped voice. There is no trace of the man who gifted me a car earlier today but I maintain my stance and shake my head. "Elna, out of my way."

"Why don’t you ever believe me?" I ask. "It was a mistake. I didn’t know he would do that. Joshua kissed me." My knuckles caress his cheek. "You know when I am lying," I whisper. Palming his face so he can see the sincerity in my eyes, I continue, "Look at me, please. I know it sounds stupid but it’s the truth, I didn’t know his plans. He kissed me."

My confidence wavers at the cold look in his eyes. "There you go again with the excuses. Once a cheat, always a cheat." I choke on a sob, my head shakes, I am not a cheat. "He kissed you," he scoffs and his lips curl in disdain, "but for the ten seconds he had his lips on yours, you did nothing about it. You didn’t protest. Make that make sense, dear wife."

Bile rises to my throat at the amount of hate he put into that one word: wife. "Shock."