“Where’s daddy?” Kaitlyn asked after a few minutes of chewing her food. Frank usually came over to say bye to them before leaving for work, even if he didn’t have breakfast with them.
“He was in a rush. He told me to say hi,” Veronica told her, taking a seat across from them at the breakfast bar. Kaitlyn looked crestfallen as she ate, while Ashley hung her head over her food.
“What’s wrong girls? You’ll see him in the afternoon again. I’m sure he misses being here,” Veronica said, realizing that a lump had formed in her throat.
Ashley looked like she was hesitating to say something. She kept exchanging looks with her younger sister. They were too young anyway to successfully keep secrets, and Veronica gave them some time. She knew Ashley was going to spill eventually.
“We’re just sad that maybe daddy is going to go back to before,” she said in a sad voice.
“Go back to before? What do you mean, sweetheart?” Veronica asked, and reached for Ashley’s hand.
“Like before you came to the house. He was always sad and grumpy after mommy died. But ever since you came to stay with us, he is happy and spends more time with us,” she explained and Veronica felt her heart sinking.
“He just had work, girls. Nothing to worry about. Now c’mon, lets get you ready for school,” Veronica declared, standing up from her chair.
She guided the kids out of the kitchen and back up to their rooms so they could take their showers and change into fresh clothes for the day. The whole time, she felt like she was going to implode from what she had just heard, combined with Frank’s behavior from the morning. If the girls were being truthful, it meant that having her here had made a huge impact on Frank’s life. He was being honest when he said that he had never done anything like this before, with any of his employees. It could mean that their relationship actually meant something more to him than just sex.
Frank didn’t return in the afternoon, as was his usual routine. Instead, it was after dinner, after Veronica had already tucked the girls into their beds that she heard the front door opening. She hurried down the stairs and found Frank hanging up his overcoat on the coat rack and placing his briefcase by the door.
“Where have you been?” she asked, as she reached the landing of the stairs. She was aware of the strain in her voice, but she couldn’t help herself.
“Work. Why?” he asked, fixing narrowed dark eyes on her. His beard looked freshly trimmed and he was in his formal office wear that made him look more intimidating than usual. Veronica caught the lump in her throat and she gulped.
“The girls have been asking about you. We didn’t know you weren’t coming home at your usual time,” she said, taking a step towards him. She had missed him all day, especially after his behavior from the morning. Veronica yearned for his touch, but Frank stood his ground. She could see now that he wasn’t going to reach out to her.
“They know that I’m sometimes held back at the office. And it’s not like I need to ask for your permission before I change my plans,” he said curtly and it felt like a dagger had been struck in her heart. Veronica thrust her chin out to him and realized that her lip was quivering.
“Yes, I know. I only work here,” she said, trying to sound as firm as possible even though she was crumbling inside. Without a word, Frank stepped past her and walked towards the living room. She followed him.
They were both silent as he walked over to the bar in the corner and poured himself some whiskey in a crystal glass. He didn’t offer her any, but Veronica knew that he was aware of her presence in the room. He was purposely choosing to ignore her.
“What’s changed, Frank?” she blurted out, when she realized that he wasn’t going to say anything. She couldn’t just remain silent endlessly. He swirled his drink around in his glass and then slowly turned to her.
“You tell me, Veronica,” he said and a small sarcastic smile was forming on his face.
She was stumped. Yes, a lot of things had changed since she met Calvin. But nothing between Frank and her.
“I don’t know what you mean. You were fine last night when I came home and since today morning you’ve been pushing me away, like we’re strangers,” she said, clasping her hands together. She was thankful that the girls were already asleep, because they definitely didn’t need to hear this.
Frank took a few hurried sips of his drink and then smacked his lips, before fixing his eyes on her again.
“We are strangers, Veronica, aren’t we? I mean, how much do we actually know each other?” he said and she shook her head, her nostrils flaring. Why was he tiptoeing around what he had to say? Why wasn’t he just being honest with her?
“Last evening, before I left for the restaurant, you told me that you cared for me deeply. That you wanted nothing more than to be with me. What has changed since then? What makes you think that we don’t even know each other?” she said, aware of the tears welling up in the corners of her eyes. She was already awash with guilt, full to the brim with the anxious thoughts in her head…with the decision she had to make. Who knew when Calvin might call and demand for her answer? And Frank was only making it worse for her. He was making her feel like she was all alone
.
“A lot of things have changed since you went to the restaurant, hasn’t it?” he asked and Veronica watched in silence as he gulped the whole drink down his throat in one go. He slammed the glass down on the bar and proceeded to fold his arms over his chest. His eyes seemed like they were trying to burn a hole right through her head. She had never seen Frank so angry. This was probably what people talked about, when they said that he was a difficult and harsh man to work with.
“What’s changed? You know nothing about what happened at the restaurant. You’re only making assumptions and taking your anger out on me!” Veronica’s voice was raised now, but she couldn’t control herself. Even though the truth was that a lot of things had changed, Frank had no way of knowing that. And she was sure that he hadn’t followed her to the restaurant and seen Calvin proposing.
“You’re right, I have no way of knowing exactly what’s changed. Especially since the first thing you did when you came home was have sex with me,” he said, maintaining his calm deep voice.
“You wanted it too!” Veronica said, aghast.
“You’re right. We both wanted it, but you failed to point out a crucial factor of the night. Which was entirely your responsibility,” he said, keeping his small glimmering dark eyes trained on her. Veronica could hardly look at him any more, without the fear of breaking into a volley of tears.
“What crucial factor? Why don’t you just tell me what’s on your mind?” she said, through gritted teeth now. She could sense that she was beginning to lose her patience.