"I made a mistake. I didn’t realize how good I had it with you," he pleaded.
I rolled my eyes as I stood staring at the man that I’d once thought I'd loved. Now looking at him, even I did not know what it was I’d seen in him. "Little bit to late for that, don’t you think?"
"Tess, please, just give me a chance to explain."
I held my hand out in front of me to stop him. "Derrick, I'm sorry, but I don't have that kind of time. You threw me to the curb, remember, and if I remember your words correctly, you were in love with someone else. No, that wasn't it. You found someone who was perfect,” I said, searching my memory for his words. “Anyways, it was something like that, wasn't it? Well, you got your wish, now you got her," I said, crossing my arms across my chest, glancing between him and the door, hoping he would take the hint and leave.
"Tess, please," he begged
Rage filled me the more he stood there begging. "You know, Derrick, I, too, made a mistake. My mistake was never cutting you loose the first time you cheated on me."
Derrick looked at me, a realization coming to his face that I had known about him and his secretary.
"That’s right, I knew, and if you thought for one second I didn't know about that, you are wrong. I knew, and I never said a word to you. Call it denial, call it stupidity, or perhaps we will say I was hoping that you might realize what you were doing and make a change, but obviously you didn’t. Instead, you just became better at hiding it, at lying to me. So you see, you aren’t the only one who made a mistake. The problem is, I could take you back right now, but you will always be the same, no matter what you say or how much you promise you’re going to change. You could be faithful for six months to a year, but eventually the urge to cheat on me will come around again." I crossed my arms and stood there, waiting for him to turn around.
The phone began to ring, and I glanced to the living room, my heart beating hard as I wondered if that call was Maddox.
"I guess that is my cue," he said in a low voice.
"Yes, besides, I've got to get that," I said, stepping toward him to try and push him out the door, but he didn’t move.
“Wait, is it true, Tess?” he asked, hanging his head.
“Is what true?”
“Did you go to Paris…with…Maddox?” he questioned, lifting his head and meeting my eyes.
I looked at Derrick. I was sure it was hurt I saw in his eyes. I blew out a breath and ran my fingers through my hair, unsure if I should tell him the truth or not, but decided that by not telling him would make me just as bad as he was. I looked into his eyes; he did deserve to know the truth. “Yes.” I nodded. “We went to Paris.”
He stood there stiff with rage. “You went on our honeymoon with my best friend?” His voice cracked.
I nodded as anxiety snaked through my body. “It wasn’t our honeymoon after you left, Derrick.” My insides shook as we stood in the hallway, our eyes locked as he digested the information.
“He’ll never be right for you, Tess. He can’t offer you the same security I can.”
I stood there, my mind going a million miles a minute. I shook my head. “You’re wrong about that.” I swallowed hard, fighting back tears. “Maddox, is ten times the man you could ever wish to be. As for security, it’s enough to say that knowing he isn’t out dicking around with every chick who walks by him is all the security I need.”
“Did you sleep with him?” he demanded.
I felt a rage build in me at his question. He had no right to ask me that because I knew exactly where he was going with this. He was going to claim that I, too, had cheated and that I was no better than he was, but I wasn’t going to stand for it. “Derrick, it’s time you leave, now,” I said, pointing to the door.
“You did, didn’t you?” he pressed, trying to get me to answer. “You fucked him on that trip? Or perhaps the two of you were fucking far before that, huh?”
My eyes locked on his, and before I could stop myself, I reached out and slapped him across the face. Instantly, he brought his hand up to cover his cheek.
“Are you going to answer me? Did you fuck my best friend?”
“Get out!” I gritted, rage filling my body.
“Do you have feelings for him?” he pushed.
“Like I said, he is ten times the man you could ever hope to be,” I whispered and looked away, avoiding eye contact. I didn’t need to answer him because he already knew.
He stood there for a few moments, watching me, then he cleared his throat. "Good-bye, Tess." He turned, pulled the door open ,and stepped out into the cold, shutting the door behind him.
I stood there for a moment, trying to dispel the tension in my body as silence fell around me.
Maddox