“They tell you about the cash? Bundles of it stacked underneath our floor.” He belched, then apologized. “Around eighty grand. Who knows where she got that.” He glanced at me. “Could William have given it to her?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think so. I can check our safe and accounts, but I don’t know why he would have.”
“Well, she can find her own way home from the station.” He took a long sip of his drink. “And she’s not staying at home. I’m going to let her pack a bag, but then she’ll have to find a hotel.”
“Good. I hope she ends up at a Motel 6.” Taking my drink from the bartender, I held it out in a toast. “Here’s to misfires.”
He winced, then nodded, clicking his drink against mine. “To misfires.” Our eyes met; then I lifted the drink to my mouth and took a sip. It was strong, the mixture almost pure liquor, and I swallowed it with a bit of a cough. “Jeez, that’s strong.”
He nodded at the brunette, who was drying off glasses by the sink. “Amber’s the best. Hey, Amber!”
She looked over one shoulder, a glass still in hand.
“This is Cat.” He gripped my shoulder. “She’s the only person in the world right now who understands my pain.”
“It’s true,” I agreed, smiling at him. “We’re tortured twins.”
“Tortured twins!” He cackled like it was the wittiest thing in the world. “Amber, Cat is married to the man who has been screwing my wife.”
“Wow,” she said slowly, setting the glass up on the shelf. “You guys are an unexpected pair. Where are the cheating scoundrels?”
“Well, my wife is in jail,” he said grandly, and I let his exaggeration slide. “And her husband is ...” He squinted at me. “Well, I don’t know where William is. Somewhere expensive.”
“My husband is talking to his attorney and figuring out the best way to fire your wife.” I took another sip of the drink and shuddered.
“Ha.” He slid the glass in a circle on the bar top. “You know ... I’ve been thinking about what would have happened if the gun hadn’t misfired.”
I watched him carefully. “If the gun hadn’t misfired ...,” I said slowly. “You’d be hurt, or dead.”
“Yeah.” He nodded. “But”—he raised a finger in speculation—“wouldshe have gotten away with it?”
I frowned. “They would have done the same investigation, right? Still discovered the photos and the money. And the photos were what really caused them to find the affair, right?” My voice broke a little, and he reached over and patted my arm in the helpless manner of a man who didn’t know what to do.
“You know ...,” he said carefully, “I don’t know why he did anything with her when he had you. It doesn’t make any sense.”
I swallowed a burst of emotion that threatened to bring on tears. “Thanks,” I said quietly.Thanks, but so what?It didn’t matter if I was prettier or younger. Sweeter. Less psychotic. He still went for her. If I hadn’t stepped in, how far would it have gone? What could have happened?
He withdrew his hand. “Have you talked to him about it? Found out how it started? Or why?”
“Yeah. He—” I took a deep breath. “He said it just happened. That it was a mistake. That he didn’t know how it got to that point, but it had.”
“Sounds like bull,” he growled.
“Yeah.”
He hunched toward me. “Did you suspect it? Anything between them?”
I made a face. “I haven’t been a fan of your wife for a while now. I thought they were spending too much time together, but he brushed off my concerns.”
The bartender paused by us. “Ready for the next on the list?”
Matt nodded, then glanced at me. “Are you staying with him?”
I had to lie. If I told him the truth, it might give him permission to follow suit. I hesitated, then slowly shook my head. “No.” I met his eyes. “I can’t forgive what he did. Do you think ... that you would have forgiven her? If she hadn’t—” I waved my hand in the air as if to indicate his situation in general. “You know. Tried to kill you.”
He unexpectedly laughed, a contagious one that started as a chuckle and wheezed through his body, his chest racking, tears dotting the corners of his eyes. I joined in, and it was sad how much he needed my approval, his posture lightening when I began to giggle.
Then, as suddenly as he had started, he stopped. “I don’t know what I would have done,” he admitted. “But this wasn’t the first time she’s cheated on me.” He looked down at his drink, then downed half of it in one continual sip. “Last time I didn’t even confront her with it. I found out and never did a thing about it.”