Page 14 of Due Process
I had two foes who were caught in my sights, and I wanted to ensure I had perfect aim before I pulled the trigger.
May the bestwoman win.
Chapter 8
FELIX
I watched from a distance as if I were an outsider looking in.
My wife appearedhappy, her cheeks flushed rosy, the overhead lights beaming off her blonde crown, like she had a halo. And that mischievous, playful smile… was stretched wide for him.
Vicious jealousy cut through me as my eyes narrowed on Curtis, who nudged into Stella’s shoulder as they entered the elevator.
They had a lunch meeting booked in, as told by the schedule I’d managed to hack.
In a strange sequence of events, Stella had poached my mistress as her assistant, which had me constantly on edge.
I’d hardly seen Heather around the office since she’d switched roles. However, that didn’t stop her from messaging me at all hours, her tone flipping from begging to being outright fuckingcrazy. I ignored and blocked every attempt, yet she always managed to find a way.
A constant anxiety writhed beneath my skin, the fear of her opening that big mouth persistently pushing me closer to a psychotic break.
I hated myself. I mean, how could I not?
With Stella thrust back into my orbit so abruptly, I had no choice but to acknowledge the hard truths. I was still insanely attracted to my wife and respected her above all others.
So where did it all go wrong?
The truth of it was, I was conned into reliving an old memory and got lost in the fantasy. Some of the happiest moments of my life were the struggling years as we created Stella Financial Management.
Long days and sleepless nights, stressful negotiations and failed ventures. My wife was there through it all, fighting alongside me.
And once we had gained a modicum of success and bought our office space, we celebrated our hard work by christening every hard surface available.
We were insatiable for one another. Whenever she wore that power suit or the tailored slitted skirts, I had no choice but to steal her away and break down that professional façade by making her come on my tongue, fingers or cock.
Then, time got between us, and I gained a new secretary. My wife was busy being a mum, and Heather was present and agreeable. I realised all too late that my initial attraction was because she had certain features akin to a young Stella.
I was addicted to the revived excitement, the thrill of spontaneity with the risk of getting caught. I had made the conscious decision to fuck around and find out… Well, now that it was upon me, Idid notwant to find out.
Since Stella was at home with the kids, I had forgotten her significance and stupidly believed I deserved more. And due to my sheer selfishness, I had initiated my future downfall. Which I was willing to prevent at all costs.
I had to lay the groundwork, dump everything and put my family first.
Barely a week had passed since Stella had returned to the company, and I was starkly reminded of why I never should have made the comparison to begin with. Every evening since, I had tentatively entered her office and tried to convince my wife to come home with me.
She insisted on staying, stating that it was her turn to work hard and prove herself. NowIwas pushed out the door, encouraged to spend quality time with the boys while she worked endless hours to compensate for my absence.
I had unintentionally set a gruelling precedent, and I didn’t fully realise it until our roles reversed.
I held no power to complain or contest her actions since I had been doing the same for months.
Eli and Phoenix? Well, that was a whole other disaster in and of itself.
My oldest didn’t spare me a glance, let alone a word, his headphones drowning out my voice. And his game console had his sole attention.
Our two-year-old, on the other hand, cried for his mummy. Phoenix was so used to having Stella all to himself that, when his daddy took over bedtime, his little cries filled the house. He got so worked up the first night that I thought he’d make himself sick. Stella refused to pick up her phone, so I had no choice but to enlist Dylan, my father-in-law, for help.
I was ashamed, but at least my boy wasn’t distressed, curling into his grandfather like he was his own personal teddy bear.
