Delicious Adonis? How much coffee had she drunk this morning?
I shook my head, relieved it wasn’t a real favor. “Oh, that’s Silas. Sophie’s twin.”
“Sophie’s twin?” She tilted her head and thought for a second. “I could see that, I guess.”
Sometimes it threw people off that Soph and Silas were twins. He had dark hair, and she’d had blond. She was loud, boisterous, and ready to fight at the drop of a hat, where Silas was…Silas. They may have shared fifty percent of their DNA, but they couldn’t have been more different. Except for the eyes. Those were the same.
Peyton’s nose scrunched. “Isn’t that the one who lives in Wyoming?”
“Yeah. He’s just home for a couple of months while we try to figure out what’s going to be best for Anna.” I could see the next question coming, so I went ahead and answered it. “We have joint custody, I guess.” I chewed my lip. “So weird to saythat out loud.” My stomach had calmed down a bit now that Peyton had taken my mind off of it. But my knees trembled. I had to get some food in me. Food that I could actually keep down.
Peyton’s face twisted in confusion. “You have joint custody and you’re not married? Are you adopting her?”
“I’m not sure exactly how it’s all going to work yet.” I could already tell she was going to keep asking until I told her everything. So I gave her a quick rundown of what I did know.
Her eyes bugged. “That hottie is living with you for the next three months?”
Hottie? “It’s just Silas.” I snorted and reached for the mouse, so I could shut the computer off. “I’ve known him for forever. And he’s got a girlfriend back in Wyoming.”
“Good Lord.” She fanned herself. “I’ll tell you right now if he was living with me for three months, the first item on the agenda would be to break them up. Trick him into walking in on you in the shower. Go swimming in your cutest little bikini. You’ve got a hot body, Lem.” She held her hands up in ajust sayin’manner. “Touch him every time you get the chance. Heck, go crawl in bed next to him and blame it on sleepwalking.”
If I told her I’d been in the same bed with him last night, she would’ve lost her mind.
She laughed and shrugged. “Don’t tell Braxton I said any of that. Whew, I’m a sucker for the strong, silent type.”
I was dumbfounded. To see one of the prettiest girls I knew fawning over Silas was…eye-opening. Sure Silas had a nice smile—I’d figured that out last night. And he’d finally stopped brushing his wavy hair, which had made it the texture of a used-up scouring pad. But she was talking about him the way my momma talked about Harrison Ford or Brad Pitt. Like she’d throw away every Christian virtue she’d ever been taught if she got a chance at him.
“You need to get ahold of yourself,” I said. “He’s just a guy.”
She pretend slapped me. “Wake up, Lemon. He is notjustanything. He’s a ten, and he’s got that deep, husky voice. Seddledowne doesn’t normally breed men like that.”
“If you say so.”
“I definitely say so.” She raised her brows up and down. “So? Are you gonna do it?”
“Do what?”
Her eyes widened, annoyed. “Break him and his girlfriend up?”
I pursed my lips. “No, I’m definitely not going to do that. Besides, I’m married, remember?”
She rolled her eyes. “Please. Everybody knows you and Billy split up.”
My stomach dropped to my knees. As far as I knew, no one knew—except the Duprees and Momma. “Excuse me, what?”
She shrugged. “Yeah, he’s going around telling everyone that you’re a terrible wife. You haven’t had sex with him in a year. You can’t even make boxed macaroni without ruining it.”
Honestly, at that moment, I wished those things were true. I wished I hadn’t spent hours making him Food Network worthy dinners, ironing his shirts, working my butt off only so he could spend all our money.
But my biggest wish…
That I hadn’t given him his way anytime he wanted it. I’d actually been stupid enough to believe if I kept him happy in the bedroom, he’d never go looking somewhere else. Even when I was flat out exhausted, I let him have his way. Every single time. Billy had drilled it into my head—that’s what a good wife does. And I’d been so young and dumb when we got married that I’d believed him.
And he’d cheated on me anyway.
I was sick inside and not from the nausea.
My heart banged against my ribs and I felt light-headed. I held onto the counter. Why couldn’t I stop blinking? “Where did you hear that?”
