To Be Cherished

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

THURSDAY MORNING DAWNED just like every other morning. Glen had breakfast with his family, even if his mood was more sullen than usual, and then went off to work. Cherish played the dutiful wife, saying all the right things at all the right times, going through the motions, but her mind was anywhere but on what she did. Faith was due back tomorrow, and that only gave Cherish one day to get Edwin back in her grasp. So far, nothing she attempted that week had worked. She followed him around the office, brought him lunch, even stayed after work hoping to get him alone. Yet, he seemed to do everything in his power to avoid her. He went home early. Left the office for lunch on some trumped-up business meeting. Arrived to work late. He did everything he could to avoid her, and so far, it worked. Today would not differ from the looks of things, either.

By the time work was over, Edwin Coldwell was nowhere in sight, and she had no real reason to hang around. Nessa Sanchez, the part-time office help who filled in for Faith that week, was already packing up and heading out the front door, leaving Cherish alone in the room affectionately known as the Girls’ Den.

Jed Jorrell, one of Edwin’s main office managers, walked into the room about ready to flip the lights off when he saw Cherish sitting there in her chair, staring at her computer screen. “You okay?”

Cherish blew out a frustrated breath. “I’m fine. I just expected more than I should have.” The truth is, I shouldn’t be expecting anything. I have a family. Yet, she couldn’t help it. Edwin became more than he should have in her life, and she just couldn’t let him go. Not yet. “I’m going home. See you tomorrow.”

“Only another day, and then the office returns to normal,” Jed said as Cherish passed through the door.

“Oh goody,” was all she said as she passed out of his sight. She didn’t want her sister to come back. Faith could stay away forever for all Cherish cared. She wanted to scream. Why wasn’t life going in her direction?

Once home, she picked Jordie up from her neighbor, Aubrey McDonald, and headed home to cook dinner. Glen came home from work, his mood still somber and distant. Obviously, what she told him the previous night still didn’t satisfy him, but he didn’t press the issue. For that, she was glad. She didn’t need another evening of defending her actions, of which there was no defense.

Friday morning was much the same thing, only this time Cherish dropped Jordie off at preschool before going to work. Edwin was actually at the office this morning before her, which didn’t surprise her, really. Faith was due back this morning. He’d want to make sure he didn’t miss his precious piece of ass. Cherish’s temper already boiled by the time she dropped her purse on her desk in the Girls’ Den. Nessa walked right in behind her and offered her a good morning to which Cherish only offered a growl in return.

Glancing back at the office door, she decided it was time to push her advantage, and it didn’t matter who was around. Faith was due back, and Cherish needed Edwin’s attention before then. Saying nothing, she left the Girls’ Den, heading for Edwin’s office. Jed and he stood at the giant whiteboard in the hallway outside of Edwin’s office, going over the list of jobs for Rutherford Construction. They both turned to look at her when she approached, Jed with a smile, Edwin with a tense frown. “Can I talk to you?” she asked Edwin. “Alone.”

“Sure.” He gestured toward his office as he turned to Jed. “Get Grady up to the Melbourne Medical Buildings. We need to push those guys a little more.”

“Will do,” Jed said as he turned to leave the two of them alone.

Cherish stood in Edwin’s office by the corner of his desk, her arms across her chest, her foot tapping when he entered. He left the door open; she assumed he hoped she would be careful with what she said, worried others might overhear her. He was wrong. She was way past the point of others knowing her business.

She followed him with her gaze, turning so she always faced him as he made his way behind his desk and into his chair. Already, he acted protective of himself, putting a barrier between them whereas before he would usually sit on the edge of the desk, his jeans tight against his c**k and thighs, tempting her. She had lost. She knew it. She just wanted to know why. “What happened to us?”

“Us?” He feigned ignorance with his expression, his brows crinkled over the bridge of his nose. “Nothing happened to us. You’re a great employee. You’re doing a fine job.”

“Don’t be an ass, Edwin. And don’t think just because that door’s open, I won’t shout out our business for the whole office to hear. Glen is already asking if I’m f*****g you, so there isn’t much else for me to risk now, is there?” Why did men always play stupid? Did they think it was their superpower? That by ignoring or pretending something never happened, it would just go away? “So again, let me ask, what happened to us?”

Edwin ran a hand through his dark hair, his gaze darting to the open door as he blew out a breath. “Nothing happened to us, Cherish. We were having fun, and now, we’re not. That’s all.”

“But why not? What did I do? What does my sister do that I don’t? Tell me, and I can do it. Tell me!”

Edwin held his hand up, gesturing for her to lower her voice as he glanced out the door again to see if anyone was there, listening. “Cherish, you didn’t do anything. Look, the longer we went on, the more obvious it was you needed something I couldn’t give you. You were looking for a relationship, something you’re missing apparently in your marriage. I’m not wanting a relationship. I was just in it for the fun.”

“Don’t assume you know a damn thing about my marriage. And so what, my sister was more fun than me?”

“What makes you think anything is going on between your sister and me?”

“Because I know you. I was the one you were sleeping with, remember? I know what it looks like—what you look like—when you’re screwing one of your employees. Don’t even deny it.” He’d deny it until his dying day, and she knew it, but it didn’t matter. She knew the truth. She lived it.

“I won’t be the one who comes between you and your husband, and it was obvious that’s what was happening. You weren’t just wanting to have fun anymore. You wanted a white knight, and I am far from that for anyone.”

“That’s for damn sure.” She glared at him. “You’re afraid of coming between Glen and me, but you have no problem coming between Faith and Selby.”

He sighed. “I told you; there’s nothing going on between your sister and me.”

She knew he lied. She knew him. She knew her sister. Or, at least, she did at one time. Faith became someone totally different from the timid little church mouse she used to be a year ago. Now, she was more like some nymph on steroids.

Cherish said nothing else. She simply turned and walked out of the office. This isn’t over, Mr. Coldwell. I swear, this isn’t over.

The morning went by quickly, phones ringing off the hook as people prepared for their weekend, trying to get as much into the day as they could without really doing too much at all. When she finally allowed herself to glance up, Edwin stood in the doorway, a cigarette tucked behind his ear. “Join me for a smoke break?”

She nodded, scrounged in her purse for her own cigarettes and lighter, and then followed him through the office and out the back door. It used to be their daily ritual, a few moments when they could be alone and talk, flirt, talk about what they wanted to do to each other when the rest of the employees left. That is, until he started banging her sister. Then it all changed. Cherish couldn’t get her cigarette lit fast enough. She needed the calming nicotine and action of smoking.

“Look, I’m sorry,” he said after he had his own cancer stick lit. “I should have talked to you about it, instead of just dropping things like I did. I was wrong.”

“You were an ass,” she said. “And I don’t doubt for a moment that your attention went somewhere else. If you weren’t screwing my sister, you’d still be sniffing around my skirts. Men like you don’t give up a piece of ass for no reason, and I highly doubt your pulling away had anything to do with your conscience and worrying about my husband. You were getting your jollies somewhere else, even if you don’t want to admit it.”

He sighed, blowing out a stream of smoke as he did. “You can believe what you want. I just wanted to clear the air and apologize.”

The sound of tires on gravel drew their attention to the side of the building as Morgan Brewer drove into the back parking lot of Rutherford Construction. He parked his massive truck beside Faith’s small Toyota, and Cherish could see the two of them talking as he turned off the engine. Probably thanking my dear sister for playing house all week. She must be a lot better piece of ass than her personality dictates.

When Cherish saw Faith come around Morgan’s truck, Cherish took a step closer to Edwin, letting her sister think things were back to normal, even if they weren’t. Cherish watched as Faith took a deep breath, shaking her head as she turned her attention to Edwin.

“How did it go?” Edwin tossed his Salem into the distance as he left Cherish’s side and approached Morgan and Faith. “Ready to return my girl to me?”

Cherish wanted to scream. Not even back two minutes, and already, Faith had Edwin’s undivided attention again, leaving Cherish behind. She glanced at Faith. “Welcome back,” was all Cherish said as she dropped her cigarette and went back inside, leaving the two men alone with Faith. She refused to stay and watch them fawn all over her sister. Not when she stood right there wanting to be the object of at least one of their attentions.

She dropped into her desk chair with a growl. She had failed to get what she wanted this week. She lost. She swiped at her eyes with the back of her hand, keeping the tears from rolling down her cheeks. It had been a long time since someone dumped her. Almost six years, actually. This time hurt just as much, if not more, than that one because this time there wasn’t someone stepping in to fill that void. This time, she was alone.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Glen spent all day trying to shake the feeling that his wife had betrayed him, sneaking around behind his back for some s****l adventure with her boss. Yet, the feeling never went away. The worse part was that since he arrived home, the feeling only grew into a nauseous knot in the pit of his stomach. All Cherish did was b***h about her sister and how Edwin immediately went all gooey when she returned. She didn’t even care that Glen dropped Jordie off at his Grandma Lansky’s for the night. Barely even noticed it, actually. She obsessed over Edwin and his infatuation with Faith. You just don’t talk about someone that much unless there’s something happening between you. Glen knew. He knew his wife cheated on him, even if she hadn’t admitted it the other night, and now he just couldn’t take hearing it anymore.

“You’re f*****g Edwin,” he whispered. It wasn’t an accusation. He didn’t yell. He merely made a statement.

“Are we really going to do this again?” She glared at him.

He shrugged. “It’s the only explanation as to why you won’t stop talking about him. It’s the only reason you’re so obsessed about him and Faith. It’s the only thing that makes sense. You’re f*****g him. You’re jealous.” The pain of the statement seared his chest, constricted his lungs forcing him to fight for each breath. He held out hope that his gut instinct was wrong. He prayed he was wrong, scolded himself for even contemplating such a thing. Cherish was not the same woman she had been almost six years ago. She settled down, turning her focus on raising Jordie and being a family, being a wife. She wouldn’t just throw that away on a whim, would she?

He stood there in their kitchen and stared at her, silently begging her to deny his accusation, to laugh the notion off like she always did. He had dropped Jordie off at his mother’s, not wanting his son around just in case his gut was right. It was a smart decision.

At first, he thought she would still deny it, starting another fight, instead, full of denials and false statements about how ridiculous he acted. He almost wished she had done that, kept denying it. Then, he could pretend as well. But she didn’t deny it this time.

“Yes! I f****d him! Is that what you want to hear? I had an affair with Edwin. There. I said it.” She stood there, her arms wrapped around her waist. Her face grew red with anger, but she shed no tears. She didn’t apologize or say that it was a mistake she regretted. She said nothing like that. She wasn’t sad at all. Instead, she was furious.

He should be furious as well. Perhaps that would come later. Right then, he only felt broken. “Why?” His voice came out as a distant whisper. This couldn’t be happening. He had pulled her away from that lifestyle. Stood by her when others walked away. He gave up his life to create a new one with her, with Jordie. He covered her sins with his love, and his sacrifices weren’t enough for her.

“Because it was exciting. It gave me a rush to sneak around with Edwin. I missed that excitement in my life.” She squeezed herself tighter as she looked away. For just a moment, he thought he saw the glistening of tears in her eyes. “I grew bored with my life. Up until I had Jordie, my life was one giant party. I missed that feeling, the feeling of being chased and then of finally allowing someone to catch me.” She turned her gaze back to him, and he saw the pain on her face. “Life had fallen into a rut, and Edwin offered me an escape. I took it.”

“So all this jealousy with your sister, all this…anger…is because he stopped f*****g you?”

She turned her lips up in a sneer. “He’s been f*****g Faith, if you can believe it. The timid, little Faith Greer isn’t the saint she pretends to be.”

He gave a weak chuckle as he shook his head, his gaze looking at anything except her. “You’re mad because the man you cheated on me with cheated on you? You don’t see the hypocrisy in that? You don’t even care that you cheated on your husband. Nice.”

“Glen…”

“No!” Tears finally began to fall from his eyes, streaking his cheeks. He didn’t wipe them away. He wanted her to see the pain she caused him. “No. There’s nothing you can say. I’m sorry I bored you. Perhaps you’ll be better off without me then.” He nodded, decision made. “I’m leaving.” He pushed past her toward his bedroom, their bedroom.

She grabbed his arm, attempting to jerk him back around. “What do you mean you’re leaving? You can’t leave. Hell, Faith f****d Edwin, and Selby didn’t leave.”

He spun around, and she collided into him. “I don’t care what Faith and Selby do!” His voice was a snarl. Cherish took a step back, her eyes wide with the shock of his outburst. “He, at least, knew his wife was f*****g Edwin. You were cheating on me! You’re not even ashamed of being caught, only that Faith got to play with your toy.” He took a menacing step forward. “You no longer get to have your cake and eat it, too. I loved you enough to come to your rescue once. I don’t love you enough to allow you to cheat on me. I’m done.”

“What about Jordie? What are you going to tell him?”

She stared at him with wide eyes, and he could tell she was afraid. After all this time, after everything they’ve been through together, she still didn’t know what type of man he was. It turned his stomach. “I’ll figure that out when I get there, but don’t worry. He’s my son. I’ll always protect him and take care of him. I’ll drop him off in the morning, but I won’t be staying with him.”

She just stared, her lips moving, but nothing came out. She played her hand as long as she could, and now, Glen called her bluff. With all the cards on the table, there really wasn’t a winner. Everyone lost this time.

He packed enough clothes for a couple of days. He’d stay at his parents’ place until he figured out his next move, whatever that was. To be honest, he didn’t know. He just knew he couldn’t stay here. Not tonight. Maybe never.

He jerked his car door open and threw the quickly packed bag into the passenger seat. With one foot in the car, he stopped, his hand gripping the door as he turned back and stared at the front door of his house. She didn’t chase after him, didn’t beg him to stay and not leave her. She just stood there, watching in her stoic silence as he stormed past her, leaving her with the pain she caused him. His throat constricted as he stood there, staring, fighting back the tears that wanted so badly to burst from his eyes, shedding his pain. Why hadn’t she tried to stop me? Not even once did she say, “Please don’t go.” He wasn’t sure which hurt worse, the fact she slept with Edwin Coldwell or that she hadn’t asked her husband not to leave her.

He slid into the driver’s seat, shoving the key into the ignition. He needed to leave, to get out of her sight for a while. Yet, if she had just once asked him to stay, said she was sorry and for him not to leave, he would probably have caved right then. But she didn’t. She just stood there, arms across her chest, and watched him walk out the door. He shoved the car into drive and hit the accelerator as he punched in his father’s name on his cell phone.

“Glen? Hey, son. How’s your night going?”

He took a deep breath. “I’m coming home for the night. Mind if I crash in the spare bedroom?”

Silence. Then, “No, no. Not at all. I’ll put on some coffee.”

“I may need something stronger.”

He could hear the worry in his father’s voice. “It’ll be waiting for you when you get here.”

Glen ended the call and tossed the phone in the seat beside him. He was going home.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

She stood in the hallway, her arms wrapped around her stomach doing her best to keep her insides from spewing all over their living room floor. Cherish hadn’t meant to hurt him, to say the vile excuses for what she did. Her words were hateful and hurtful. She didn’t even apologize. She spewed her venom and watched the pain of her words dim the light in his eyes. If she was given time to cool off after her day with Edwin, she probably wouldn’t have gone off on Glen the way she had. Yet, she still fumed, her body pumping with the adrenaline of her encounter with Edwin and then watching him go all puppy-eyed over Faith when she returned.

Glen didn’t deserve what Cherish did. He was right. He had stepped in when everyone else had stepped out. He kept her secrets, gave her a life without shame. Yet, how did she repay him? She screwed around behind his back, betrayed him. And she didn’t even show remorse.

She heard him shuffling around in the bedroom; drawers opening and slamming shut. She heard the bi-fold closet door jerked open. Hangers rattled as he ripped clothes from their place. She could hear the hurt in every movement, even though she couldn’t see what Glen was doing. She fought the urge to throw up.

She was remorseful. Very. Yet, she was too hurt and angry to rein in her outbursts. She couldn’t stop. She couldn’t even stop him from walking out the door.

When the front door clicked closed and the car engine started, she crumbled to the floor, sobs wracking her body as her world fell apart.