He’s Not Yours

The Imperfect Day.

Today is the day! The day I finally get to choose my wedding dress.

I can’t keep the beaming smile from my face as I wait in line for my coffee order. Everyone else in the shop seems miserable today but they don’t know I’m going to buy a dress to marry the man of my dreams, Mr Simon Smalls, CEO of Smalls Hall, exclusive events venue and planning. If they knew then I’m sure they’d be smiling for me too.

I have the day off work, the smell of delicious coffee in my nose and my first appointment to try on dresses in just 40 minutes time. Life is perfect…until my phone dings with a message from the dress shop.

“Good morning Derry. I’m very sorry but we will need to cancel your appointment today as we have just arrived to the shop to discover we have a burst water pipe. Sorry for the inconvenience and we will be in touch soon to rearrange.”

With a sigh I take my coffee and decide to head home for a while. I have another appointment at a different boutique later this afternoon so I won’t let this little set back ruin my mood. Maybe if Simon hasn’t left for work yet we can head back to bed for a while. So with that thought, I rush back home to surprise my future husband.

As I turn onto our driveway I see his car still there, and with seduction in mind I creep through the front door. I dash quietly up the stairs with the plan of changing into something a little more sexy than my leggings and hoodie before letting him know I’m back. Pausing at my bedroom door I listen for any sign of movement downstairs, but what I hear is not coming from downstairs, it’s coming from my bedroom, and it’s distinctly female. My heart drops and my throat constricts as I register the moans of pleasure.

No, he wouldn’t do this, I must be mistaken. Maybe it’s the TV. Yes, that must be it. He is watching TV in bed I reassure myself, and with a shaky breath I twist the door knob and push open the door.

It’s not the TV.

“What the hell!” I half scream, half sob as I take in the bodies moving together before me. Cindy, our accounts manager, looks back at me in shock as Simon never misses a beat, still driving into her from behind like he doesn’t care I’ve just walked in. He looks at me with a smirk.

“Come here baby,” he says, beckoning me over with a hand.

My mouth falls open as I try to form words.

“What the f**k Simon!” I eventually force out.

“Either come join us or leave, you’re really ruining the mood right now,” he says with a sigh.

I notice Cindy struggling to move away but he holds her in place with a tight grip on her hips. She is obviously in just as much shock as I am. Unable to watch anymore, I turn and run back down the stairs and into the kitchen. I just make it to the sink before my coffee makes a rapid reappearance as my body rejects it and I begin to hyperventilate. How could he do this? This is not what I signed up for. We are supposed to be married in just 5 months time. We have grown a successful business together and bought this beautiful house. Everything was perfect, so why? Why would he cheat on me, and even worse, why does he think I’d be okay with it and want to join in. I heave the last of my coffee into the sink and rinse it away. I turn to look at the kitchen, the kitchen we planned together. The kitchen that will no longer be mine. I pull the engagement ring from my finger and place it on the kitchen counter before heading towards the front door.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Simon's voice startles me as I go to open the door.

“I’m leaving,” I snap back and turn to glare at him. He raises his eyebrows at me and looks at me in amusement as he fastens his belt.

“Oh really? And where will you go?” He snorts.

Making me pause to think. I have no family after being abandoned as a baby and growing up being passed around multiple foster homes, and since I moved to the city I have thrown myself into my work and then my relationship with Simon. I have no real friends, just work associates and he knows this.

“ I’ll go to a hotel,” I huff.

“ And how will you pay for that hotel Derry?”

“With my bank card, why does that matter?” I ask.

“That’s a joint account Derry, walk out that door and I’ll have all the funds moved to my private account before you can get to the end of the driveway,”

“But, why? What have I done to be treated like this. You not only cheated on me but now want to steal my money too? I earned that money, you can’t take it,” I shout.

“ I own the company, I pay the wages, legally you have none. So I own you. This house is mine, the business you kindly volunteer for is mine, you are mine. So I suggest you go and clean yourself up and find an appropriate outfit for the charity ball we are attending tonight. Otherwise, you can sleep on the streets with no food and no money. The choice is yours.” He shrugs and saunters off into the kitchen and I hear him routing around in the fridge.

I suck in a breath and contemplate my situation. I’m stuck. No money, no job, no where to live. He had this all planned out. I worked my ass off to help build his company whilst he took all the credit and I trusted him to deal with our joint finances. How could I be so damn stupid? The sound of a creek on the stairs catches my attention and my eyes lock with Cindy’s as she creeps down the stairs with her shoes in her hand. She approaches me with wide eyes and whispers “I’m sorry.” As she slips past me and out the door. I close it behind her with a huff and storm up the stairs and straight into the shower, where I can cry without letting him see a single tear from me.