Housewife Gone Wild

Chapter 11

Yvonne froze. It was the first time she’d ever seen Jared and me fight. Before, whenever we argued, I always gave in first to keep the peace. But today was different. I didn’t apologize or back down.

“Daddy, Mommy, please stop.” Yvonne burst into tears. She clung to Jared’s arm, wiping her eyes. “I don’t want you to fight. Please don’t do this.”

Jared looked at me, his voice cold. “Work isn’t negotiable. You can keep your little hobbies, but you’re not walking away from our family.”

He bent down, lifted Yvonne into his arms, grabbed her tiny backpack, and walked out.

I didn’t shed a single tear. To be honest, I wasn’t even mad. I had seen this coming.

“Mrs. Holcomb, are you okay?” Wendy and Joyce asked, voices worried..

I smiled, “I’m fine. Sorry about the mess–can you clean it up?” Then I grabbed my purse and car keys and left.

I drove around aimlessly, the wind whipping through the open window, lifting my scarf. Behind my sunglasses, my eyes started to burn.

I married a rich guy and lived this shiny. To everyone else, I should’ve been carefree and happy. And maybe I was, once. But I’d got stuck in my head, slowly falling apart.

I thought after that fight, Jared wouldn’t ask me to lunch. But around eleven, while I was sitting in a café, sipping bitter coffee, he texted to ask where I was.

it to him. He told me to meet him at

restroom and touched up my makeup. If Jared wanted to treat me like his

up, the noisy crowd went quiet. The guys couldn’t even look me in the eyes. They got all polite, keeping their voices low. Some mumbled “hi,” and I smiled back. Others tossed out compliments, and I

a crisp suit, over six feet tall, looking sharp. I

sitting right beside Jared. She had on a gray blazer, shoulder–length hair, looking smart and

her necklace

up at me but

started chatting, digging into their food.

mistress on the other. The other guys couldn’t help but stare

acting like I had no clue who Tracy really was. I smiled, worked the room, and kept up appearances. Guys were checking me out with those hungry looks, but I played dumb

lot, a faint flush coloring

1/2

Tracy stepped in. “Mr. Holcomb can’t drink more,” she said.

smoothed things over with some glib remarks and dropped the idea

clout at the company, and everyone

it was a silent provocation aimed at me. But I acted like I didn’t catch it. Why bother? I was already done with this marriage. If she wanted that jerk Jared, she

her face

wrapped up, and I got

leaned into me, his hands reaching out to wrap around me in a