Chapter 21

Chapter Twenty-One

AINSLEY

W e'd left the kids at home alone with clear instructions not to leave the house or answer the door as we headed to Seth and Glennon's, not much room for talking in the thick silence that filled the car. When we pulled into their driveway, I'd picked the nail polish off most of my fingernails.

"Ready?" Peter asked, switching off the car. He was pale, his hands still gripped tightly to the wheel.

"It's going to be fine," I assured him, though I didn't feel that way at all. "Act normal. We have to pretend everything's normal."

He opened his car door without another word and walked around the front of it to meet me at the edge of their yard. We walked across the dying grass, littered with red and yellow leaves, to reach their front porch. As soon as we stepped foot on it, the front door swung open and Seth appeared.

His crooked smile filled his stubble-coated face. He ran a hand over his dark, buzzed hair and stepped back to hold the door open. "'Bout time you two showed up," he joked, hugging me before shaking Peter's hand.

Peter gave a low laugh, pulling him in for a one-armed hug. "How's work?" he asked as he released him. Under normal circumstances, I'd walk away from them as their conversation faded into shop talk, but that night, I didn't want to leave Peter alone. I was too worried he'd panic and say or do something incriminating.

Seth and Glennon were our best friends, but did I believe they would cover up something like this? And even if they did, did I believe they'd still look at us the same? The truth was that I couldn't expect them to look at us the same when I couldn't even look at us the same.

"Work's good," Seth said, sighing. "We had this killer merger in Toronto, so we've been dealing with trying to keep everything running smoothly…" I watched Peter wince at his use of the word killer , though Seth didn't seem to notice. "Always a pain in the ass, but the acquisition will be worth it in the long run. What about you? How're things? How's business? How're the kids?"

Peter was nodding excessively, not responding, a thin sheen of sweat on his brow. I put a hand on his arm. "The kids are well," I said. "And Peter got asked to weigh in on the redevelopment downtown." Peter met my eye, a small smile on his lips, then he looked back at Seth, seeming to regain his footing.

Seth gasped. "Is that right? That could be huge!"

Falling into a rhythm, Peter's shoulders seemed to relax as he said, "Yeah, it's looking great. It'll be nice to know I had a hand in making the skyline what it'll be. I've got the few buildings downtown right now, but this'll be…it'll be the biggest deal of my career thus far. "

"That's excellent, man. Hey, you want a beer?" Seth pointed down the hall, toward the den that had been converted to a man cave.

Without looking my way again, Peter nodded. "You bet."

"Want us to grab you anything, Ainsley?" Seth asked, pointing a finger gun in my direction.

"Nope, I'll grab some wine with Glennon. You boys have fun."

Seth tossed an arm around Peter's shoulders as they walked away. "Okay, so you'll never believe what happened… Canada, man, it's wild…"

I turned away from them, heading for the kitchen where Glennon had a spread of food laid out.

"Mmm, something smells good," I said, startling her. She turned around, a wide grin on her face.

"I thought I heard you come in. Sorry, I was just trying to get this finished up."

"No worries." I hugged her close, kissing her cheek briefly before moving toward the half-empty bottle of wine on the counter. "What are we having?"

"We're trying something new tonight."

"That's brave," I said, pulling a glass down from the cabinet.

"It's called cauliflower tacos with cashew crema," she said, donning an accent, though I wasn't sure where it was supposed to be from.

"That sounds…interesting," I said, taking a sip of the wine and grabbing a carrot from the veggie tray. I dipped it in hummus before popping it into my mouth. The food looked delicious. The cauliflower that filled the shell was browned, covered in dashes of cilantro and onion.

"We're going vegan," she announced. "I watched this documentary on Netflix, and I swear I'll never eat meat again."

"Of course you did." I nodded. Glennon was always looking for the next new thing, be it a diet, activity, or career.

"Hold me to it; you have to swear. It's disgusting what they do to these poor animals. I'm making you watch it with me again."

"Sounds delightful. I'm looking forward to it," I teased. "And how's the diet going so far?"

"It's not a diet, love." She put her hands out, held in Jnana Mudra as if she were meditating. "It's a lifestyle."

"Well, how's your lifestyle going, then?" I asked, eating another carrot with a smirk on my face.

"We started yesterday, and I've stuck with it," she said proudly. "Even Seth is going along with this one. His cholesterol has been up at the last few doctor's appointments."

"Good for you, babe," I said seriously. "I'm proud of you. This is one diet I can get on board with. And you know I'll eat anything you make. I don't think you've ever made anything I don't like."

She laughed, loud and boisterous, and picked up her glass of wine. "Have you forgotten about the cookies I made with almond flour when we were on keto?"

I laughed with her, remembering it well. " The sand cookies! Oh my god, how did I forget? Okay, fair enough, I take it back. Most of the things you cook are delicious, so I'm sure these will be, too."

"I've got beans and rice as a side, so if we don't like these, we have a backup. And veggies, lots and lots of veggies."

"Lovely. Let me help you carry them to the table." I reached for the jars of sauce sitting on the counter, and she touched my arm, stopping me from walking away. When I looked over at her, her face was serious.

"Hey, before the guys get back in here… What happened?" she asked, keeping her voice barely above a whisper. "Are you guys okay?"

I forced a smile. "Oh, yeah. It's okay, it's nothing."

"Did he do something wrong?"

I shook my head, my lips pressed together. "Not really, no."

She appeared hurt, releasing my arm. "Why are you shutting me out so much lately? Have I done something wrong?"

"No!" I said. "Of course not. No, it's an issue with Peter and me, and he feels uncomfortable with me talking too much about it. You know I'll tell you everything when I can."

"Is he cheating on you?"

My breathing quickened, and I forced myself to look away. "Why would you ask that?"

"Because he's a man," she said flatly.

I shook my head, moving into the dining room. "It's nothing like that, trust me. You know I wouldn't be sticking around if that was it."

She stopped in her tracks, and when I reached the table and looked back in her direction, she seemed hurt. Before I could say anything, she asked, "You'd leave him?"

"Of course I would." I scoffed. "Was there ever any question?"

"Just like that? You wouldn't consider counseling or…I mean, what about the kids?"

I cocked my head to the side, placing the jars onto the table. "Is there any amount of counseling that would make a cheater less of a cheater? And as for the kids, I wouldn't want any of them to stay in a loveless marriage, so why would I stay in one myself?"

"But…just because he cheated…it doesn't mean he doesn't love you."

"What are you talking about, Glennon?" I asked her, hearing the men's voices growing near the room. "Where is this coming from?"

"Nothing. You know me. I'm just rambling," she said, her face growing red as she shuffled past me and set the platter of food down. Moments later, our husbands reappeared, beers in hand, and joined us at the table. Glennon wouldn't meet my eyes as we sat, and Seth filled the silence with talk of his travels and the merger.

I wasn't listening, only nodding along as I ran her question over and over in my head.

What was she talking about?

Why had she asked so many questions about Peter cheating on me?

What did she know?