Page 2 of Green Lights and Obsession
“Oh, Daisy.” He lifted her and carried her to the bed. “What am I going to do with you?”
“Keep me.” It was her silent plea. She knew he’d be shipping off soon and she didn’t want him to leave.
He brushed a piece of her hair from her face. “I’m going to come back for you.”
“Promise?” She chewed on the edge of her lip.
He nodded and placed a kiss on her forehead. “On my life.”
Only he didn’t come back.
CHAPTER ONE
DAISY
Five Years Later
Betrayal.Heartache. Anger. Embarrassment. Those were normal emotions for someone to feel when they caught their husband cheating on them. However, this wasn’t the first time. Even the first time wasn’t as shocking as it should have been.
It was always the same. Pretend she didn’t see. As if she didn’t know.
Love stories aren’t for everyone. Those are strictly for little girls who are allowed to dream. Girls that grow into teens that have a chance to rebel and be with the bad boy. Young adults that have memorable meet cutes and find their chance of forever. As if there were such a thing as fate.
Real life isn’t full of romance and happily ever after. It’s made up of stolen moments in the dark before getting caught. It’s having your heart ripped out and the pieces never fitting back together again. Like random puzzle pieces thrown in a box that don’t belong, but she tried to fit them together.
She tried to do what he asked of her. WhatThe Familyasked of her. It only left her more broken inside. A reminder of the choices she lacked.
Reality is betrayal and life is nothing but a tragedy hidden by the elite with their fake smiles, expensive clothing, and ulterior motives. They were all connected. The elite. The politicians. The mobsters. Even the entertainers on the stage and screen. They were all working together behind the curtain to ensure the world played out how they wanted. It was something she had to learn at a young age; she was simply a part to be played. All but one spring of Daisy’s twenty-seven years on this earth had been orchestrated for her.
She thought it would change when she got married, and have a little more freedom. All she did was move from one prison to another. Sit pretty on a pedestal surrounded by an iron gate with piercing arrows at the top and no means of a way down.
The first time she caught her husband with someone else, cool air had quickly filled her lungs in the heat of the moment. She wasn’t devastated. Daisy wasn’t a complete idiot. She knew realistically, there would be another woman at some point. It was an arranged marriage. She simply thought it would happen after the ink had a chance to dry.
Finding her husband fucking the maid on their honeymoon wasn’t normal. Then again, she chose not to have sex with him their first night together. Maybe it was nerves. Maybe it was the hope for a little friendship first out of their arrangement. It was then she knew the reality of her situation.
Daisy would never have a happily ever after.
“Let’s go.” Jordan pulled her along the hallway and into the living room. “Thoughts?”
“Fleeting.” Daisy had zoned out the moment her eyes landed on Tom. The gap from where his office door hadn’t been closed all the way was just large enough for her to see the pleasure on his face. He’d been video chatting with his mistress again.
It hurt more this time. It was always strangers, women who would come and go. This one had been around for nearly a year. Daisy recognized her raspy voice and moans. It was like nails on a chalkboard. That woman was like the ghost that haunted her in the wake of their real loss. The loss Tom continued to blame her for. He didn’t need to; she blamed herself enough.
“Let’s distract ourselves.” Jordan smiled.
Jordan Baker was her best friend. Unfortunately, she was also her only friend. They’d been roommates all four years of university before going about their separate lives. Where Daisy’s life was forced in the direction her parents chose for her, Jordan could dream big. She was a socialite influencer, but if you asked, she’d tell you she was nothing but an amateur golfer.
Daisy always laughed at that answer. Jordan had earned a full scholarship being the amateur she claimed to be. That’s how it had always been between the two of them. Play it down and pretend they didn’t come from the families they had.
“Hmmm.” Jordan pursed her glossed lips together and narrowed her brown eyes before brushing her short dark hair behind her ear. “You said your cousin is coming today. What’s he like?”
Daisy sighed as she fell back onto one of the oversize chairs. “It’s been too long. He was like the big brother I always wanted.”
Jordan continued to try to divert her attention, but seeing Tom continued to replay in Daisy’s mind. It wasn’t only that her husband was cheating. It was the fact that she didn’t know how to distract herself. Her husband rarely left her alone and when he did, she wasn’t truly alone. He didn’t trust her.
Daisy twirled the sheer fabric of the curtain behind her around her finger for a moment longer, then turned to face Jordan who relaxed across the chaise lounger. Jordan reached for her vape pen, but paused as the door opened.
“What time is he supposed to be here?” Tom entered the room and didn’t bother looking at her.
