Unnatural Relations (Lust and Lies Series, Book 1) (44 page)

Selena leaned forward and covered Teri's hand. "I've heard gambling can be as bad of an addiction as drugs and alcohol. There's even a Gamblers' Anonymous."

"Yes I know, but the addict has to want to help himself. I thought I was helping by putting my earnings in a separate account he couldn't access."

"What did he do when he found out?"

Teri sighed. "He went berserk. Mind you, he never laid a hand on me, but he smashed every piece of our good china before he calmed down. Afterward he was all apologies and promises again. That lasted about a month. Then he didn't deposit his check into our house account on payday."

"So you had it out again."

"You got it," Teri confirmed, making a disgusted face. "That time he threw a lamp through a window. He promised to get help, if I would just bail him out once more to the tune of twenty-five hundred dollars. I gave it to him, but with the warning that it was the last time. I thought he was doing okay, until three weeks ago." She shook her head still having trouble believing how easily he had fooled her. "I found out he had stolen a check from my business account and forged my signature."

Selena's mouth dropped open. "This sounds more like a nightmare than a marriage. Can't you have him arrested for that?"

"I don't know. After everything he's put me through, I don't love him anymore, but I don't have it in me to put him behind bars for something he obviously can't help. That night I asked for a divorce. He pulled out all the stops. The macho-man cried like a baby. He reminded me that our religion prohibited divorce, not that we've been especially devout Catholics all these years. He swore he loved me too much to ever let me go, and starting from that minute, he was going to prove it by being the best husband a wife ever had. But first, he needed a little financial assistance." Recalling how shocked she had been at his incredible nerve, she rolled her eyes and gave a dry laugh.

"I agreed to give our marriage one last chance but I refused to give him any more money. He told me he had gotten in over his head with some very nasty people. I saw real fear in his eyes, but I still said no. I was through bailing him out.

"I really never expected him to live up to his promise. But he's been attending GA meetings for the last three weeks and basically, he's been an angel. We were almost like newlyweds again." She took another sip of tea, and Selena waited patiently for her to continue.

"I overheard him on the phone when I went back to the house earlier. He still owes somebody money—maybe the same nasties he told me about. It's all been an act to get me to pay off his debt. The worst part is, I finally realized the reason he doesn't want me to file for divorce has nothing to do with our religion or love. It's all about my money."

"Do you have a big life insurance policy?"

Teri looked at Selena in surprise. "What an awful thing to..." She stopped and recalled Rico's words over the telephone—
I'll get the money out of her. One way or another.
She shook her head slowly, thinking of Rico's explosive temper and the handgun he insisted on keeping in the nightstand drawer
for protection
.

"We both have life insurance policies. Of course his is just a small one through the post office, enough for funeral arrangements. Mine is for a hundred thousand... enough to cover the mortgage... unless I die in an accident. Then it's a million."

Selena whistled. "That's a very tempting reason to push you down a flight of stairs."

Teri's eyes widened. "No. He wouldn't do anything like that. He's a gambler and a liar, even a thief, but I don't believe he'd hurt me physically."

Selena shrugged. "I hope you're right. Keep your guard up, just in case. If he gets desperate enough, he's liable to graduate from breaking things to breaking bones. Don't look so skeptical—I know what I'm talking about. I've read a lot of true crime stories. And remember, if it looks like he's about to change tactics and try some rough stuff, you can always hang out at my apartment in town."

Teri forced herself to smile. "Thanks, hon, but I really don't think that'll be necessary. To be on the safe side, though, I'm not even going to confront him. Instead, I'm going to play along until I talk to an attorney. At least I should find out how hard it will be to get a divorce, knowing he'll contest it. Damn! I don't need this aggravation. How the hell am I supposed to be creative with this over my head?"

Another tear threatened to escape her eye, but she quickly swiped it away and smiled again when she saw how disturbed Selena was. "I'm sorry. It was really crappy of me to dump all this on you."

"Don't say that. What kind of friend would I be if you couldn't unload your problems on me?"

"I've only got one problem I'd like to unload. But he doesn't seem to be agreeable. You know what would be wonderful? If he met some hot-to-trot bimbette that got him so worked up, he decided to leave me on his own."

"Is there any chance he's fooling around? You could hire a detective to follow him."

"I wouldn't be surprised if he's cheated on me along with everything else. But since he's been on this good behavior kick, I can account for every hour of his day. I even went with him to his GA meeting one night. Of course, I suppose he could always fit in a quickie along his delivery route if he really wanted to." She meant it as a joke but Selena didn't laugh.

Selena got up and walked back and forth a few times. "I've been told I have a very analytical mind. There must be some way..." She paced a little more, then abruptly returned to her seat. Her eyes sparkled with excitement. "I've got it. I'll set Rico up. The way he slobbers over himself every time he sees me, seducing him should be a cinch. Once I've got him hooked, you'll hire a detective to take some incriminating pictures and,
voilà,
grounds for a divorce."

Teri let out a squeal. "You're too much. I think sacrificing yourself to my husband might be a bit beyond your job description." Picturing Rico and Selena together made her chuckle. Not only were they extreme opposites in coloring, Selena was about four inches taller and thirty pounds heavier than Rico, but Teri had seen his reaction to her, and slobbering pretty much covered it. When Teri vocalized her thoughts, Selena caught a case of the giggles. They were soon exchanging ideas about what Rico would do with so much woman after twelve years of sex with a pixie.

Selena amended her suggestion. "I was only thinking of leading him on, but you might have the key to a permanent solution. Sex with me would probably kill him, and then you wouldn't have to worry about how to get a divorce."

"But I'm not sure he deserves such a great goodbye gift!" A tear squeezed out of Teri's eye, but this one was from laughing so hard. "If I thought for one minute you could get Rico out of my life permanently by having sex with him, I'd not only give you my blessing, I'd double your next dozen paychecks!"

Selena arched her brows and pursed her lips. "Well now that you said that, I guess I'm going to have to get to work on it."