Page 2 of The Wedding Ranch
“I just want you to be happy. Marriages make it through transgressions sometimes. I can’t say how I’d react. But love guides us, and forgiveness is key.”
“Seems to me if we were both following the same wedding vows, there wouldn’t be anything to forgive. If I just knew the truth it would be so much easier.”
“I’m sorry this happened to you,” Pam said.
Lorri looked down. With a shake of her head, she said, “Me too. I still love him.”
“I know you do. You’re hurting, and a year is a long time to hold on to this.”
“You’re right, it’s no way to live, and I know I didn’t do anything wrong, but it makes me feel like a failure.”
“Honey, you’re not.”
Lorri scanned the charges on the credit card. “I don’t believe this.”
“You arenota failure. You’re wonderful—”
“Not that. I’m looking at the credit card bill. There’s a one-hundred-and-twelve-dollar charge for flowers, and last week there was one for three hundred and twenty dollars at a jewelrystore.”Jewelry? He’s buying her jewelry?She swallowed back the acrid taste that suddenly filled her mouth.
“Wow,” Pam said. “It looks like Craig finally figured out Valentine’s Day after all. Maybe it’s not too late for him to shape up and be the man of your dreams again.”
“Honestly that did not cross my mind.” She let out a sigh. “I was thinking he bought someone else jewelry. Or maybe he’s feeling guilty.”
“Marriage is hard,” Pam said. “Especially when trust is broken. It’s like a piece of paper you’ve crumpled. When you smooth it out you can use it, but it’s never the same.”
Lorri hesitated, almost afraid to say the words out loud. “There is a little flutter of hope in my heart right now.” She transferred money to cover the over-credit limit. “You must think I’m an idiot for still feeling that way after all my complaining about him.”
“Not at all. You’re the only one who can decide when enough is enough. You’ll never hear judgment from me. I’m your friend. Your happiness is what matters to me.”
Lorri smiled into the phone. “Thank you. Have a wonderful celebration tonight. Hug Bobby for me.”
“Will do. Call if you need me.”
“I’ll be fine. Bye.” Lorri hung up. Pam was a true friend. The other women they’d met through neighbors, husbands, and country club events. Dutiful wives, all of them. The social time and girls’ lunches were necessary for life balance, but the women weren’t the kind of friends you confided in. It was Pam who had convinced Lorri to confide in their friend Kelsey, the best divorce attorney in Raleigh, about her options so she’d know what to expect if it really came down to that.
She didn’t know if she’d take the next step. She loved Craig—well, the person he’d been when she married him. For better or worse, but this last year was in the worse column for sure. She strongly suspected, but couldn’t prove he’d cheated.
Stop overthinking it.
She dialed her favorite Chinese restaurant. “Order for pickup.” She recited the order from memory. “Wait, cancel the General Tso’s Chicken.” That was Craig’s favorite. Tonight was about her, not him.
When she got home, she didn’t park her car in the garage like Craig always insisted. Instead she parked in the driveway, carried the takeout inside, and set her keys on the entryway table.
Craig’s voice startled her from across the room with a throaty “Surprise!”
She juggled the bag as she spun around. “What are you doing here? I thought you were—” She took two steps into the great room then stopped. Craig sat on the couch petting a dog, which made no sense at all because Craig hated dogs. “Why is there a dog in our house?” The dog’s long tongue lolled out of the side of his mouth in a weird grin.
Craig raised the dog’s paw. “Happy Valentine’s Day!”
“What?”
“You’ve always wanted one. Right?” He held a shredded red ribbon. “He was wearing a bow, but you’re late. It didn’t survive the wait.”
“I…” Part of her was suspicious, but she was genuinely touched by the unselfish gift. “Yes, you know I have.”
She knelt to the floor.
Without a moment of hesitation the pup raced across thehardwood floor toward her. His short tail wagged at such a frantic pace it looked like his rear wasn’t attached to his front.
