I don’t answer. Instead, I go to my office and close the door. How long has he been cheating on me, and especially since when has he been so violent? He lets himself go in the bedroom, but we never exceed certain limits.
I hear him knocking insistently on the door.
“It’s open and stop it, I already have enough headaches,” I tell him in a quiet voice, even though I’d like to scream and leave him forever. Unfortunately for me, marriage has value and lasts forever. Getting a divorce isn’t an option, and even if it were, it would be an endless battle with him.
“Baby, we need to talk.”
“Talk about what? Do you want to file for divorce? So you’ll have the freedom you want?” I catch him off guard. “Can I not satisfy you anymore? Is that why you’re looking elsewhere? It would be the only explanation since I don’t pressure you. I always give you your freedom.”
He throws a punch at the wall, almost smashing it. His hand starts to bleed. “Stop talking bullshit!” he growls.
Despite everything, I’m worried about him and run to see his hand. I make him sit on the sofa while I get the first aid kit and disinfect the wound. “You wanted to talk, right?” I tell him, annoyed. “I’m listening.”
“I didn’t betray you. Don’t even think about divorce. When I said ’til death does us part, I was damned serious.” I look up, and in his eyes, I see a hardness and coldness that I’ve never seen before.
“I wasn’t thinking about divorce. At least we agree on that,” I reply as I get up to go and throw away the bloody gauze. Jeremy pulls me sharply to him.
“And you satisfy me, Hailey, you can’t imagine how much.” He dips his eyes into mine and kisses me. “You’re only mine, baby, for eternity,” he growls at my mouth. I smile nervously, and he hugs me.
“No more vanilla and lipstick on shirts,” I tell him, biting his shoulder.
“I don’t know how it happened but believe me, it won’t happen again.”
“I hope.”
* * *
I’m going shopping while I hear the phone ring in my bag. This is the tenth time in one hour.
“Hello, love, what’s up?” I ask.
“Hello, baby,” Jeremy says. “I’m done for today. We can go shopping together if you want to.”
“I’m already out shopping, but you can join me. See you at Urth Café. I’ll be there in five minutes.”
“Perfect, baby. I think I can do it in ten minutes. I love you. See you later.”
“I love you, too.”
Urth Café has always been an almost obligatory stop. Their coffee is fantastic. I still feel like I’m going back to Italy, and the feeling is spectacular.
I choose a table outside and sit down, checking my email, full of writers’ requests. As soon as they found out that I’ll be running a book and reading blog, they went crazy.
I hear the roar of the Jeremy’s Porsche 911 engine and makes a crazy sound, though I’m fonder of my silent Tesla. I put away the phone and wave at him.
“Hello, baby. Have you already ordered?”
“No, I was waiting for you.”
We order our coffee while he sits next to me.
“Have you been waiting a long time?” he asks, making himself comfortable.
“As if you didn’t know. You texted me every 20 minutes to find out where I was.”
“What’s the harm? I want to know where you are.”
Sipping my coffee, I notice that he’s smiling. I don’t know if that’s a good thing.
