“I would not say as much,” Theodore said.
“She is fine,” Alistair made sure to add. “At least she was at pains to make us think that she was. We asked her where you were and why you were not home…”
Christopher braced himself because he had no idea what Rose might say. In time, they would need to tell people that their marriage had ended, but in the rush to leave, they had not discussed the short-term lie they would need to tell.
Then again…do I even care? That is where I am at right now. All this effort to present myself as people expect, to bethe perfect lord, and I am sick to death of the lies and the subterfuge. If acting that way for my entire life has led me here, how can I still want or care about such a thing?
“And what did she say?” Christopher asked.
“She said as you have,” Alistair answered him. “That you went to the country for work purposes. Alas, she could not tell us when you would return.”
“I have not given her a date, is why. But I suspect it will be soon.”
“There was one more thing…” Theodore crossed the room so he was standing right in front of Christopher. “And Alistair agreed with me, after we left her. But your wife, she seemed…” He clicked his tongue. “A little unwell.”
Christopher’s stomach dropped. “Unwell? What… what do you mean?”
“She appeared sad,” Alistair said. “Oh yes, she wore a smile the entire time. She laughed at our jokes. She assured us that all was good in this world, but there was something off about her.” Alistair looked at Theodore, who nodded. “In truth, the way she was behaving reminded us of you.”
“Of me? What does that mean?”
“The false presence of charm,” Theodore said. “The words she spoke were the correct ones, but there was something in her eyes that was missing. A spark, so to speak.”
“I…” Christopher shifted nervously. “Perhaps she was just tired.”
“Perhaps,” Theodore agreed. “Likely, she has just spent too much time around you. Poor thing, it is starting to rub off on her.” He laughed and shook his head, only to turn serious suddenly. “Or maybe it is as we feared.”
“Christopher…” Alistair approached Christopher on the couch and then, done carefully so as not to frighten, sat down beside him. “Do you consider us your friends?”
Christopher blinked. “What? Of course I do.”
“Do you trust us?” Theodore sat down on the other side of Christopher.
“What sort of question is that?”
“Then why are you lying to us?” Alistair said. “And not just about your wife and your marriage troubles.”
“There are clearly a trove to choose from,” Theodore added.
“About everything,” Alistair continued. “When I saw your wife, when I looked into her eyes, I knew that she was lying withouthaving to ask. And it made me think about you, how you often act. That…” He clicked his tongue. “That look you often wear that tells me the story you are giving us is only half the tale.”
“Less than half,” Theodore said. “We are not here to judge. We are not here to pry. And dammit, if you tell us to get up and leave, I suppose we will make our peace with that.”
“But we are your friends,” Alistair said, his voice soft. “And if something is wrong, I hope you know that we, of all people, will help you. We want to help.”
“If you will let us,” Theodore said, his voice just as soft, no longer lacing everything he said with humor because the time for such things had passed.
“I…” Christopher shifted uncomfortably. “I do not know…” He looked between his two friends, unable to hold their eyes because both looked upon him with such raw concern that he feared what they would see if he held their stares for too long. “You are both thinking far too much into it…” He laughed awkwardly. “You know how I am.”
“Oh, we know it,” Theodore said. “A little too well.”
“What then?” Christopher demanded, forcing anger into his voice now. “You think I have been lying to you? About what exactly? Let me ask you, what sort of friends come to a man’s home and accuse him like this?”
“But this isn’t your home, is it?” Theodore pointed out.
“You know what I mean!” Christopher jumped to his feet and turned on his friends. “I appreciate the concern. And I appreciate that you both thought you needed to…” He laughed bitterly. “To help me? But I do not need help! I am fine! Perfectly damn wonderful, is what! Never better and thank you both for asking!” He drank the rest of his whiskey, looked for a place to put the glass, but ended up tossing it against the wall.
The glass shattered, but neither man so much as blinked. They just sat there, looking up at him, not for a second buying what he was telling them.
