back a bit on the amount of work he’s given his son? Then why was
Eric never home? She knew why. She’d known why for a long time.
“When that didn’t seem to help,” Daniel went on, “I started
thinking.” He paused and Jennifer took the time to really study his
face. Daniel was a handsome man, distinguished and debonair, and
aging amazingly well. His silver hair was thick and his face rugged,
but not haggard. His green eyes, so like Dawn’s, normally twinkled
with merriment. Instead, they were dull. There were lines on his
face, lines she hadn’t noticed before. He looked older. And worried.
“Thinking about what?”
“Jennifer, do you think Eric really wants to run the firm? I
know this is what I’ve been grooming him for, ever since he gradu-
ated, but now I’m not so sure it’s the right thing to do. For him.”
She hesitated, her loyalties to her husband warring with her
desire to be honest with her father-in-law.
He held up a hand, palm toward Jennifer. “I know this is a very
awkward and unfair position for you. I’d never normally ask you to
betray his confidence.” He looked at the floor. “I’m just not sure
who else to ask.”
“Have you tried talking to Eric?” she asked softly.
He smiled a knowing smile and Jennifer was sure she saw a
flash of pride in his eyes. “I had a feeling that’s what you’d say.
Honestly, though? I don’t know whether he’d tell me the truth or
Thy Neighbor’s Wife 117
what he thinks I want to hear.”
He had a very strong point. She tried to put herself in Eric’s
shoes. She really wasn’t sure what she would have done, how she
would have answered. The fear of disappointing her parents—her
father especially—was always such a huge burden and she’d carried
it from her childhood into her adult life. She knew Eric felt the
same way and she was suddenly angry with both herself and her
husband for never being able to overcome that stigma.
She took a deep breath. “Eric has never said in so many words
that he doesn’t want to run the firm. Not to me.”
“I sense a ‘but’ in there.”
She nodded. “But…” She hesitated for a long moment. “I think
it would be too much for him. I don’t think he’d be happy. This, of
course, is simply my opinion.” She snapped her mouth shut before
she spilled any more information, glad to have it on the table, but
not sure she’d done the right thing by analyzing her husband’s feel-
ings without asking him flat out how he felt. In the back of her
mind, she also questioned her own motivation for doing so. The
possibilities frightened her.
Daniel pressed his lips together. Jennifer got the impression
that he was not at all surprised by what she’d told him. He took a
long, final swig of his tea and stood. “Thank you, Jennifer. Thank
you for being honest with me.” He sighed in resignation. “I just
want my boy to be happy. I don’t think he knows that.”
“Maybe you should tell him some time.”
“Maybe I should.” He smiled grimly at her. “Thanks for the
tea.”
She watched him drive away, wondering what had spurred him
to come to her in the first place and suffering from the niggling feel-
ing that she may have just opened Pandora’s Box.
Chapter
Thirteen
“I think that’s it.” Nikki’s voice shook slightly as she handed a
box to Jackie, who took it down to David and his waiting SUV. She
wiped her clammy hands on the legs of her shorts; terrified that
Diane would come home before the lot of them were gone. True,
she felt much stronger with her friends supporting her, but she knew
Diane didn’t understand and just the thought of having to explain
yet again why she was leaving was almost too much to bear.
“You’re sure?” Alex stood next to her.
“I think so.”
“What about this?” Alex picked up a small cactus in a purple
pot, a knowing grin crossing over her face. “Isn’t this yours?”
Nikki smiled back—her first since they’d arrived there—and
took the plant from Alex’s hand. “You know it is. You bought it for
me.”
“I’m glad to see you didn’t kill it in retaliation.”
“It’s not the plant’s fault you were an idiot.”
“True enough.” The playful tone of Nikki’s voice took the sting
out of the comment, but Alex still felt a flush of guilt. They stood
quietly together. “Well. This is a little weird, huh?”
Nikki chuckled. “What, my ex helping me leave my girlfriend?
That’s just typical lesbian behavior, isn’t it?”
Alex’s laughter died in her throat as she turned to the front
door and saw Diane standing there.
“What the hell is this?” she asked, clearly aware of what it was.
Nikki turned white as a sheet. “Diane.”
“What the hell is going on, Nick?”
Alex was relieved to see both Jackie and David appear in the
hall behind Diane. They were hanging back out of respect, knowing
Diane and Nikki needed to have it out, but they could be inside in a
flash should things get ugly.
“I’m leaving.” Nikki’s voice was barely audible and she studied
her feet as she spoke.
“No, you’re not.” Diane’s eyes flashed and she blinked repeat-
Thy Neighbor’s Wife 119
edly. It was a bit unnerving and Alex—who had been thinking about
slipping out the door—decided she’d stay nearby.
“Yes, Diane. I am.”
“But…”
“It’s been coming for a long time. You know that.”
Diane’s eyes filled with tears. “Why? I don’t understand.
Why?” Her voice broke.
Nikki’s shoulders slumped further and she covered her face
with her hands in frustration. “God, Diane. We’ve been over this a
hundred times. Why don’t you ever listen to me when I talk?”
“I’m sorry. You’re right.” Diane spoke quickly, reaching
toward Nikki. “You’re right. I’ll listen. I promise. I’ll be better. I
can be better.”
Nikki shook her head. “No. No, you won’t. You don’t even
try.”
“I will. I’ll try.” Diane’s voice cracked with desperation. “I
promise I’ll try.”
Nikki looked like she might be sick right there on the floor.
This was the Diane she’d fallen in love with. This woman, pleading
with her, was the one who seemed to have disappeared. “I can’t do
this any more,” she said softly. “I can’t.”
“I get it,” Diane said frantically. “I get it. Okay? I do. You
made your point. You’ve scared me. I hear you. I can change. I’ll fix
it. I can change.”
Nikki’s voice was scarcely a whisper. “No, you can’t.”
Alex watched the change on Diane’s face in horrified fascina-
tion. She went from pathetic pleading to steely anger in a matter of
seconds, her eyes hardening, her nostrils flaring slightly. When she
spoke, it was a low, menacing growl.
“You ungrateful little bitch.”
Nikki’s head snapped up in recognition and dread. This was
the woman she was leaving.
“Come on, Nikki,” Alex said hurriedly, reaching out for her
friend’s arm. “Let’s go.”
“And who the fuck do you think you are?” Diane spat at Alex.
“It’s not enough you broke her heart once, now you’ve got to wreck
what she’s got with me?”
“I don’t think I’m the one doing the wrecking.”
“Alex has nothing to do with this, Diane. You know that.”
Nikki was visibly shaking.
Diane’s laugh was chilling and her voice was a venomous
sneer. “You think I don’t know you’ve never quite gotten over her?
You were nothing but her throwaway when I met you. You were
pathetic.” She spat the word with disgust at Nikki, who flinched as
though she’d been slapped and tried to swallow down the pain of
120 Georgia Beers
the words. “I took you in. I loved you after she destroyed you.” She
poked a finger in Alex’s direction. “And this is the thanks I get?
This is my repayment? You leave with her? How long has this been
going on, you fucking tramp?”
Alex had had enough. After months of putting up with Diane
for the sake of everybody else, after endless occasions where she’d
simply bitten her tongue or stifled a remark, she’d had enough.
“Oh, for Christ’s sake, Diane. Get the hell over yourself, would
you? She’s not leaving with me. She’s leaving you. Why don’t you
try to get that through your thick, self-absorbed skull, huh?” She
tugged at Nikki’s arm. “Come on, Nick. Time to go.”
Diane’s eye twitched once as she glared at Alex. “Good luck
trying to pry her knees apart.” She reached out as she spoke and
shoved Nikki viciously toward Alex. “Go, you frigid little cunt.”
Nikki stumbled as she tried to keep her balance and the cactus
slipped from her grasp, crashing loudly to the hardwood floor and
shattering into several pieces, dirt flying everywhere.
Alex felt the rush of anger wash over her like a tsunami. “Don’t
you touch her, you psychotic bitch! Don’t you ever lay a hand on
her again, you hear me?”
David was through the door in just enough time to place his
bulk between the two as Alex hurled herself at Diane, the latter egg-
ing her on. The expletives that flew from their lips made even David
raise his eyebrows in surprise as he towered over the two of them,
keeping them apart with a hand on each.
Jackie rushed to Nikki’s side, protectively placed an arm
around her shoulders, and escorted her out the door.
“Back off, Diane,” David said, fire flashing in his normally
kind eyes. “I have a rule about hitting women, but I’ll gladly make
an exception for you.” He physically directed Alex to the door.
“Let’s go, Alex. Come on.”
“Fuck you,” Diane spat, her face flushed an angry red. “Fuck
all of you!”
Alex pointed at her as David pushed her through the doorway.
“This is your fault. You blew it. Remember that while you’re curs-
ing us. You’re nothing but a coward and you have no idea what you
had. Not a clue.”
* * *
The interior of David’s SUV was quiet as they drove. The back
was full of what few possessions Nikki had chosen to keep with her
when she moved in with Diane. The rest of her stuff was in storage.
The foursome sat in silence as they cruised out of the city and
headed east. Jackie was in the passenger seat staring out the win-
Thy Neighbor’s Wife 121
dow. Nikki and Alex sat in the back, Alex’s arm wrapped comfort-
ingly around her ex’s shoulders. Nikki’s head rested against Alex.
Her sobs had subsided, silent tears running down her cheeks
instead. Alex’s heart hurt for her.
As Alex gazed out at the scenery passing by, she thought about
relationships. Seeing one fall apart before her eyes—be it her own
or somebody else’s—always made her stop and try to put her own
feelings into perspective. She considered herself a fairly cautious
person and she often wondered if she was too cautious. Nikki
tended to be the opposite; she jumped right in with both feet,
always had, always would, and she knew it. She had told Alex once
that she didn’t know how to do it any other way. She’d said that life
was too damn short to be guarded about everything. She’d admitted
that she’d been burned—painfully—by this philosophy more than
once and she was sure she’d be burned again, but it had been worth
it every single time. When she sniffled from her place on Alex’s
shoulder, Alex wondered if she still felt the same way.
As they drove, Alex found her thoughts turning to Jennifer,
something that seemed to be happening often. She wondered if Jen-
nifer considered herself to be the look-before-you-leap type or if she
just leapt. She wondered about being careful and if there had actu-
ally been times when she’d let a good thing slip away or pass her by
because she’d been too busy taking precautions. The thought made
her uneasy and she tightened her grip on Nikki, who lifted her head
and took a deep breath.
“Thanks, you guys,” she said, breaking the silence. “Sorry
about the mess. She’s never home early from the gym. Just my luck,
huh?”
David chuckled. “No problem, Nick. I find a helping of good,
old-fashioned dyke drama every so often is good for me. Reminds
me how much less stressful it is to be a gay man, to just fuck whom-
ever I want and be on my way. None of this emotional attachment
bullshit.”
They all knew David and they all knew he was speaking com-
pletely tongue-in-cheek. Jackie and Alex laughed. Nikki said, “I do
wonder if that’s the way to do it.”
“The casual sex thing?” Alex asked. Nikki nodded. “I never
could do it. Always wanted to be able to, but I could never bring
myself to sleep with somebody I didn’t care a lot about. And once I
slept with them, I was hooked.”
“Same here,” Nikki said.
“Same here,” Jackie added.
“Same here,” David chimed in and they all laughed.
“So, Mr. Fuck ’Em and Leave ’Em is actually your stage
name?” Nikki teased.
122 Georgia Beers
“I’m afraid so,” he admitted. “I’m a hopeless romantic. I
should have been a dyke.”
“In your dreams, baby,” Alex said, grinning at his reflection in
the rearview mirror.
“You’re sure Rita doesn’t mind if I crash with you guys until
my new place is ready?” Nikki asked Jackie.