Chapter Eleven
Superhero Heart
I satacross the small cafe table, watching Cleo butter a roll, looking as relaxed as usual. I had spent most of the morning trying to figure out how to bring up what I had seen between her and Christopher last week but had come up blank.
“Are you sad or relieved that your show is over?” Cleo asked me. I blinked a few times and finally registered what she had said.
“Kind of both. It’s always sad when its over, but it’s nice to have the free time again.” There was more long pauses of silence than usual today. Normally the conversation flowed, and it was a pleasant break from everything. Today it didn’t feel right. I felt guilty, when I felt that she should be the one feeling sick to her stomach about it.
I chewed on my lip some and then had an idea.
“I took your advice last week and bought a few things for Tot.”
Her face brightened as she took a giant bite of the bread.
“Really? You’ll have to show me. He’s gonna be such a stylish little guy. I can not wait. Where’d you go?”
I paused, looking her dead in the eye.
“You know that little group of shops with the chocolate shop? It’s French, um.. Délice prometteur? It has all sorts of shops over there. Me and Rocky took a long walk in the afternoon, taking advantage of the nice weather.”
She rolled her eyes.
“It’s California, it’s always nice weather here.”
I chuckled. She had a point.
“We got a few things for Tot, some chocolate for the twins, and I was going to get some coffee but that cafe on the other side of the plaza was full,” I said, making direct eye contact. Her face paled and her mouth fell open slightly. Suddenly the waitress brought our lunch.
“Is there anything else I can get for you right now?” She asked us and I shook my head, not taking my eyes off of Cleo. She gulped and looked up at the woman.
“No thanks, I think we’re good here,” she croaked. Once she left her eyes narrowed and she leaned in to speak to me.
“I don’t know what you saw, but it’s not what you think.”
I reached for my fork to stab at my salad.
“Then explain it. Does Ethan know?”
She shook her head furiously.
“No, and please don’t tell him. I need time to - to figure this out without him. Christopher is threatening to sue me. For lying about the twins.”
“Sue you for what? Is that even possible?”
She shrugged, sighed and then rubbed her face.
“I guess. He wants a lot of money. Damages. He lost everything when he went to prison, so now he’s coming after everything I have.”
“What was that book he gave you?”
“It was a book similar to the one Duchess wrote. His own tell all, how an educated, wealthy man with a promising future was led astray by a wild woman who destroyed his political career, his ability to trust, and then how he rose from the ashes and is using that to help the people by changing some of his political opinions. Pure garbage. He was the one who cheated first, and then continued to cheat on me for the rest of our marriage.”
“Is he blackmailing you? Give him the money or he’ll release the book?” She shook her head.
“No, he was bragging. He’s signed a deal. The book is going to be published. People eat up that political crap. He wanted to meet me in person to tell me he’s suing for mental distress. Him and Holly both have went through so much at the hands of my fans.” She held up her hands making air quotes.
“What are you going to do? Will he win?”
