Page 60 of Seven Year Itch
“Oh, come on. The divorce is final. We can talk again.” He chuckles, and I can tell just by the sound of that laugh he’s been drinking.
“What do you need to talk about?” I wince when I realize what I just did. Asking Randal a question is never a good idea because I almost never like the answer.
One time after we were driving back from a birthday party for Ethan, I asked him how he thought I looked that day. I’d been kind of experimenting with my wardrobe, doing some more fashion-forward things I always envy on the influencers I follow, and he cut me the worst look and asked, “Do you want to fight, or you want me to say you looked fine?”
My stomach dropped because he gave me the answer without giving me the answer. So like a fool, I poked him more about it. Finally, he said, “Well, Dee, your arms looked fat, and your belly was sticking out. It’s obvious you put on a bit of weight.”
I’d never been more crushed in my entire life. The man I shared a bed with just fat-shamed me with very little effort.
I iced him out for days, giving him the cold shoulder and expecting him to come crawling to me for forgiveness, but he never did.
When we finally did talk about it, he just shrugged and said, “If your husband can’t be honest with you, who can?”
I should have left him then and there... but I didn’t... because I’m an idiot.
Randal’s voice cuts into my horrid walk down memory lane as he says, “Listen, I know we set up installments for you to pay me on the settlement or whatever, but I just found a really great place here in Denver, and I’m going to need more cash to put a down payment on it.”
My throat tightens with every word he said. “What are you talking about?”
“Can you hit me up with two installments instead?”
“Randal... no, that’s not the deal we signed up for.”
“I knooow, but you have to see this house,” he drags his words out like he’s talking to his best friend over beers, not his ex-wife of a few weeks.
“I don’t want to see the house. I don’t care about the house. This isn’t like me Venmo-ing you for pizza, Randal.”
He sighs heavily. “Fine, I’ll just bring it up to the lawyers.”
“Bring what up?” I hop out of bed, putting my book down to pace my bedroom. “There’s nothing to bring up. Everything is final. I’m paying you half a million dollars spread out over four years. That’s what we agreed upon. You agreed.”
“I know, but things changed. We might need to reopen the case.”
“This isn’t fuckingLaw and Order, Randal. We’ve already paid a fortune to our attorneys. Opening this up would be insanely expensive. Aren’t you sick of paying a lawyer?”
“Yeah, but I just think I got the raw end of the deal.”
“Then, you shouldn’t have signed the deal!” I shriek, feeling my blood pressure surge to levels beyond healthy.
He makes a weird noise in the back of his throat. Ihatethat noise. That noise is like nails on a chalkboard to me. “Dee, you got the business, the house, Boulder. I’m having to start a whole new life here. That takes money.”
“You grew up in Denver. That is your home. It’s not like you’ve moved to a foreign country! And I had the business and the house before you and I even got engaged. That’s why I want to keep them.”
“I know, but I contributed to the household expenses.”
“Barely,” I exclaim, my voice rising in pitch. “Your name isn’t even on the home improvement loan. Maybe you contributed to the groceries and utilities, but Randal... you know I covered the mortgage and the renovation. We’ve been over this.”
He makes a clicking sound with his teeth, and I feel my body shrink. “You always sound so tense, Dakota. You need to get out and live a little. Exercise, or maybe even try dating. I know sex isn’t really your thing, but you should try something to help you stop being a victim of your own life.” He laughs as if he’s the funniest person on the planet, and I’m ready to hang up when he adds, “I’ve met someone, and I’m happier than I’ve been in years.”
“I don’t care!” I snap, my hand griping the phone so tight I think it might crack.
“She’s young but she is real fun. Adventurous too. Will try anything. No problem keeping the spark alive here.”
Tears sting my eyes because I know what he’s doing. He’s reminding me of everything he said I wasn’t.Young, thin, pretty, confident, sexy.I felt like I was finally clawing my way out of the abyss. My night with Calder made me feel sexy. Like my old self again. Then with one manipulative phone call, Randal’s put his boot on my face and pushed me back down.
“Have your lawyer call my lawyer,” I hiss and hang up before I blow a gasket.
I walk into the bathroom and stare in the mirror, willing myself to see the girl I was before I met him. Not the smaller, size-four jeans girlie. The size-twelve girlie who likes how she looks.
