And for the fact I had to start over on my quest to save up enough to leave this miserable marriage.
In the dining room, the lights were slightly dimmed for the dinner crowd. Neat rows of round tables, dressed elegantly in white linens, centered the floor. The flames of votive candles flickered from the centerpieces, and soft classical music rose from a piano in the corner, a local pianist swaying with the tune.
A server led me over plush scarlet carpeting to our usual table. He clasped his hands behind his back while I sat. “Can I get you started with something to drink?”
“Just water for now,” I said. “I’m meeting Mr. Bianco.”
His gaze flickered over my shoulder, and he nodded. “I’ll be back to check on you in a bit.”
I opened a social media app on my phone when Robert didn’t appear, and I marveled at the wonderful things everyone had going on. I tagged Camilla in a post for a female-only adventure cruise, encouraging her to get her girl-crew together and make youthful memories this summer. She spent too much time with Jeff. If she wasn’t careful, she’d lose her best friends. Alicia had stubbornly stuck around after I’d made Robert the center of my world. Not everyone was as lucky as me.
Alicia had seen through Robert from the beginning. She called him out on his need to be in the spotlight, on his inability to focus on my needs after his initial push to make me his girlfriend. And he’d hatedher in return for not being fooled. She’d seen his mean side for exactly what it was, while I’d wholeheartedly believed he was just joking, or I was just overthinking things.
Even my mother had hated him, but she hated everyone, and especially anyone that made me happy.
A group of women walked by my table, chatting quietly among themselves, and something pink caught my eye. A brunette I recognized from my flower-arranging classes passed a small business card to a redhead at her side, whispering in earnest. “I hear she’s cheap and incredibly talented. Most importantly, she’s discreet. She was trained in Paris but left the country after a major scandal.”
I twisted on my seat, rubbernecking and openly gawking at their backs. That was my business card! I pressed my fingertips to my mouth, awed and delighted at the gossip about the Invisible Baker. I needed the sales. Mom’s in-home caretaker wasn’t cheap.
I needed to convince Robert to contribute to her care before the next payment.
I looked for the server and smiled politely. Maybe I did need a drink.
As if thinking of my husband had summoned him, the sound of his laughter reached my ears. According to my watch, he was more than fifteen minutes late. Given his obsession with timeliness, I hoped he had a good excuse.
I rested my hands on my lap, waiting to greet him. But he didn’t come.
The waiter returned and I asked for a merlot. Then I scanned the room, puzzled. I was sure I’d heard Robert a moment prior, but where was he?
“Have you seen Mr. Bianco?” I asked the young man. “We were supposed to meet almost twenty minutes ago.”
His eyes flickered over my shoulder again, toward the lounge attached to the dining room. “I believe he’s with the men he golfed with earlier.”
His words stung, and my jaw locked.
Robert wasn’t running late. He was fifty feet away, drinking with friends, while I waited.
“Would you like me to tell him you’ve arrived?” the waiter offered.
“Please,” I said.
Resentment sliced through me as I watched the server cross the room.
A moment later, a fresh round of raucous laughter reached my ears, and I imagined I was the butt of that joke.
When Robert arrived, his eyes were glossy from scotch, and his shirt was rumpled.
“How long have you been here?” I asked.
“I don’t know.” He looked at his watch. “Lunch.”
“It’s twenty after seven,” I said. “Have you been drinking all this time?”
My words seemed to sober him and he scowled.
The server returned with an expectant smile.
“I think we need a minute,” I began.
