“You must. You’re my wife. And remember, Hailey, you must quit your job after this publication. No discussion.”
“Okay,” I say quietly.
He moves away, and I let myself slide to the ground. “What the hell just happened?” I ask myself as I burst into tears.
I try to regain control and get ready before heading downstairs.
“You look amazing,” he tells me as I knot his tie. He reaches down to kiss me. I try to pull back, but he draws me to him and kisses me harder. Fearing his reaction, I reciprocate the kiss, though reluctantly. He picks me up and sits me on the living room table, then lifts my skirt.
“Jeremy, wait.” But I don’t have time to stop him before his hand is in my underwear. It looks more like revenge than an act of love.
“Hmmm, baby, you’re so wet,” he murmurs as I hear his pants zip open. Before I can say anything, he’s inside me.
Once finished, he kisses me tenderly. We compose ourselves and head out.
“I love you, Hailey. See you for lunch. You’re my everything,” he says, opening my car door.
“Have a good day, Jeremy. I love you too. See you later.” I try to seem as normal as possible.
But nothing is normal.
When I arrive at the office, Jack greets me, and we go to the printing house. Once he sees the printed cover, Jack is so happy that he hugs me.
I back off right away. If only Jeremy knew …I don’t want to imagine the consequences.
Back in the office, during the staff meeting, I announce my imminent resignation, to everyone’s amazement. With today being Thursday, tomorrow will be my last day, and so I hurry to get things done.
12:00
Baby, I’ll be there in 15 minutes. See you outside your office.
12:02
Okay, love, see you later.
I let myself be found outside the office. As soon as Jeremy arrives, I get in the car.
“Hi, beauty!” He kisses me
“Hi, love. How was your morning?”
“Well, we prepared some contracts and then we had a meeting. And your morning? Was the cover finally approved by your author?”
“Yes, of course, and my morning went well. I resigned as you asked me.”
He whirls around. “That’s great news. Ready for a new adventure?”
“Yeah, I think you were right. I have to relax more. I can still work from home and continue working on my book blog, giving the author visibility.”
“It would be great.” He smiles, taking my hand, and kissing it.
We go to our favorite restaurant. Italian cuisine puts everyone in a good mood.
While we wait for the waiter to bring us our orders, I ask him about Hong Kong. He broadly explains what we’ll be doing there. We’ll be attending a gala dinner for the company’s 50th anniversary.
“Do they have particular colors to wear, or can I choose any dress?”
“I don’t know, I have to ask. But not something see-through or short. Only I can see what is mine,” Jeremy says, sipping his wine.
