“Something happened between Cheyenne and Tucker halfway through senior year, though.” Austin shrugged. “She caught him with another girl or something. Cheyenne was livid, and she broke up with him.” He shook his head. “The next thing I knew, she was throwing herself at me.”
He straightened and made eye contact with Debbie.
“I was totally out of Cheyenne’s league. I lived on the opposite side of town. The side that’s considered the wrong side of the tracks, if you know what I mean.”
Debbie nodded, but didn’t say anything.
“I knew she was on the rebound and was just using me to get back at Tucker. I even resisted for a while, but Cheyenne was persistent. She kept asking me out and dragging me to do stuff with her friends. I went from being a nobody to hanging out with the most popular crowds almost overnight.” Austin popped his knuckles one by one as he recalled how vocally he’d attacked Debbie a few minutes ago. His stomach tightened.
“Her parents didn’t approve of me, so we went behind their backs. It was almost as if finding Tucker with another girl flipped a switch inside Cheyenne, and she was suddenly bent on breaking all the rules.” Austin lowered his gaze to his feet. “She ended up pregnant.”
Debbie’s hand rested on his shoulder, but he didn’t lift his head.
“I was determined to do right by her even though her parents threatened to disown her if she married me.” Austin shook his head. “Her father tried to pay me off. He begged me to dump Cheyenne and leave town. She was furious with her dad when I told her and insisted we elope. So we did, right after graduation.”
“I went from working part-time in construction to full time and managed to rent a small one-bedroom apartment. Cheyenne got a job at a fast-food joint—which she detested—until Savannah was born. Money was tight, but we were happy. At least, I thought we were.”
“What happened?” Debbie’s gentle voice made him sit back and look at her. A frown marred her pretty face and understanding—or was it sadness?—filled her eyes.
“Cheyenne refused to go back to work after having Savannah, and I was okay with that. I liked the idea of our daughter having a stay-at-home mom. But things were really tight. I worked long hours to support us, but she resented me being gone all the time. I did my best to be an attentive husband and father when I was home, but it never seemed to be enough.”
“When Savannah was about a year old, Cheyenne’s parents decided they wanted to get to know their granddaughter. Instead of insisting they come to our apartment to visit, Cheyenne took Savannah over to her parents’ mansion.”
He stood and began to pace the few steps to the door and back. “I think she was embarrassed for them to see where we lived. Over time, Cheyenne visited them more and more frequently. Sometimes, even staying overnight. When shewashome, she complained about everything; having to cook and how small and run down our apartment was.”
“She always came home with new clothes and toys for Savannah from her parents. Then before long, it was new clothes and manicures for her.” Austin’s shoulders bunched as he recalled all the ways Cheyenne’s parents spoiled her. “When Savannah turned three, her parents promised to pay for a nanny if she’d come home and live with them again. Cheyenne couldn’t resist the life of luxury they offered, and she left.”
“I’m so sorry, Austin.” She reached out and grabbed his hand, surprising him.
He ceased his pacing and looked at their joined hands. Warmth flowed from her into him, administering understanding and comfort.
Debbie gave a quick squeeze then let go.
The contact was much too brief. He liked the feel of her dainty hand against his. He shook his head. “I refused to let her take Savannah out of my life. I showed up at her parents’ house almost daily, which they hated. Her dad again tried to bribe me to walk away from my family. I made a concerted effort to court Cheyenne and win her back.” He grinned. “I did her parents’ trick and promised to build her a house if she’d give us another chance. I had shifted from working residential to commercial construction and became a project manager, so I was making decent money. She agreed to come back, but not until I had the house built. Because I did the bulk of the work myself with the help of friends, it took almost a year and half to complete. Thanks to Cheyenne’s requirements, it ended up much larger and more expensive than I’d initially planned.”
Austin straightened the soup cans on one shelf. “Things were pretty good for a while after we moved into the new house, but we had a hefty mortgage and finances were still pretty tight. Cheyenne hated having to live on a budget. It didn’t matter that she had a beautiful kitchen, she still hated cooking. And she complained about the cleaning. I helped out when I was home, but the truth was, she expected to maintain the lifestyle she’d led at her parents’ house.”
“She sounds like Peter’s daughter, Fiona,” Debbie said with a grunt.
“She was. Her parents had totally spoiled her; and no matter what I did, I couldn’t measure up. We argued almost daily.” He grabbed a pretzel from the bag Debbie still held and ate it. “I kept remembering how happy we were when we first got married, and like an idiot I suggested we have another baby.”
Debbie gasped and stood, dropping the pretzels on a shelf. “How can you say that? Hoping a baby will improve your marriage was the wrong reason to have a child; but bringing children into the world is never a mistake.”
Austin dropped back down onto the flour bucket. “You’re right, and I don’t regret it for a minute. Dallas and Cody—who was a surprise—have done nothing but enrich my life. Unfortunately, Cheyenne didn’t see them the same way. She resented what they did to her figure and how they tied her down. She became impatient and easily annoyed by every little thing they did.”
Debbie sat again, but her posture remained stiff. With as badly as Debbie wanted children, hearing how Cheyenne resented their kids probably infuriated her.
“I frequently came home to find a babysitter tending the kids only to discover Cheyenne had been gone all day. She went to lunch with friends all the time and went shopping more and more often. She Doordashed dinner all the time. I knew we couldn’t afford the lifestyle she was leading, but I also couldn’t figure out how she was paying for it. Whenever I confronted her about her spending, she always said she’d found an amazing sale or that they were gifts from her mother.” He plunged his hands into his hair as he recalled her lies. “She knew I hated her taking handouts from her parents, especially ones we didn’t need. Cheyenne had two closets full of clothes she rarely wore.”
“So, where was the money really coming from?” Debbie asked.
Austin’s jaw clenched. Even Debbie could see through Cheyenne’s lies. Why had it taken him so long to see the truth?
“She’d gotten two credit cards and maxed them out to the tune of sixty thousand dollars.”
Debbie’s brows shot up. “Seriously?”
Austin nodded. “She’d been using the cards to pay for a cleaning service along with all her other extravagances.” He shook his head again. “She hid the statements from me so well I had no clue, until she decided she was tired of living a double life and left me for—” Humiliation choked off his words.
