“Oh my God, was it for those dresses with the mushrooms on them?”
“Mine had flowers. Yours had mushrooms.”
“They were so weird.”
“Yeah, they were. Yvette was on set watching, and after we wrapped up, she told you you’d peaked and to quickly find a rich husband because you’d only go downhill from there.”
The scene came rushing back into Sienna’s mind. Her standing in her underwear and a thin robe, chilly and vulnerable while the most powerful woman in fashion told her she’d gone as high as she would. “I can’t believe that was the same day I met Zane.”
“I’ve always wondered if she hadn’t crushed your dreams like that, if you wouldn’t have gone home with him that night.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Sienna answered, irritation building in her chest. “Ididgo home with him, and now I’m where I’m at, and I can’t change it.”
“But you have to look back in order to avoid the same mistakes.”
“So what? You want me to start digging into every little hurt from my childhood? I’m in a crisis and I need a plan of actionnow,” Sienna said, her tone sharp. “Not three years from now. Today. My children are in pain. I’m forcing them to lie to everyone they know—including their grandparents—and I feel like a complete bitch about it. My husband is living in some depressing rental and might decide the grass is greener on the younger side. So if Idowant a life with him, I better hurry up and decide before it’s too late.”
“First of all, if the only thing between him wanting to stay married to you and running into the arms of another woman is the house he’s living in, you’ve already got your answer. Second, rushing yourself is the worst thing you can do. It’s what you did when you met Zane. You rushed in like there was a sample sale on Prada bags,” Kylie answered. “You’restillacting like he’s some sort of amazing catch and you can’t let him get away, whenyou’rethe catch. Not him.”
Rolling her eyes, Sienna said, “Thanks, but comparing me to Zane is like comparing apples to… something that has nothing to do with apples. He’s a genius. A god. I’m a stay-at-home mom.”
“He’s not a good husband, and isn’t that kind of the whole point of being married? To have a good husband and partner who puts you first?”
“He’s a good… well, hecanbe.”
“He’s always been a cheater, Sienna. Face it. He did it to Angela and he’s probably been doing it to you the whole time. You just didn’t want to see it.”
“What are you talking about? I didn’t see it because there was nothing to see.”
Kylie gave her a skeptical look. “Hard to believe, given his history and his line of work. You’re telling me you never once thought that there was even a possibility he could be fooling around?”
“No, I didn’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because that’s not what a good wife does,” Sienna answered, now feeling thoroughly frustrated.
“What on earth would make you believe that?”
“Because a good wife trusts her husband unless he gives her reason not to.”
“So, in all the years you were with Zane, he never gave you a reason not to trust him completely until this one event?”
Sienna stared at the cupboard, noticing a grease spot that Valerie must have missed. “Maybe. I mean, I guess if I really think about it, there might have been a few signs.”
“Like what?”
“Like… a couple of times when a woman answered the phone in his hotel room.”
Kylie’s eyes grew wide for a split second, but her facequickly transformed back to a neutral expression. “And when that happened, how did he explain it?”
“That it was housekeeping.”
“And you believed him.”
She nodded, feeling oh so stupid. “I had no reason not to.”
“Do you think it’s common for the housekeeping staff to answer hotel room phones?”
