Almost Doesn't Count (30 page)

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Authors: Angela Winters

BOOK: Almost Doesn't Count
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“What the fuck are you talking about?” She walked toward Sherise with a manic look in her eyes.
“I feel for you,” Sherise said. “What kind of an asshole expects his wife to accept his cheating, and then the second she dips a little, dumps her? The nerve.”
“What do you mean, the
Washington Post
?” Jennifer asked. “What have you done?”
“It's funny.” Sherise walked around the table on the other side. She wore no earrings and her hair was up. She was ready to fight if it came to that, but she had some more to say. “Because when I leaked it to the press this morning, they were like who the fuck is Jennifer Ross and who in the hell is Ryan Hodgkins?”
“Call them back,” she ordered. “Retract it!”
“Too late for that, bitch,” Sherise continued. “But then when I told them the person you creeped with was now a congressman you used to work for, they seemed a little bit more interested.”
“How did you . . . ?”
“You see,” Sherise said, pointing her finger at the increasingly unstable woman. “I was thinking of trying to blackmail you, but then I thought, no, I need to reserve my blackmail for someone who can help me destroy you. Blackmail is to prevent damage. You've already done—”
“You bitch!”
Sherise could see the absolute panic that had taken the woman over as she started for her. Her entire body was shaking. Sherise realized, that by walking around the table to save herself some time, she had basically placed herself in a corner. This was not good.
She tried to hop out of Jennifer's way so she could swing around, get behind, and push her into the sofa-lined seats behind her, but Jennifer was too quick. She jumped on Sherise and pushed her down. They both fell onto the leather seats lining the wall.
Jennifer was screaming, but Sherise was quiet because she was trying to focus. She grabbed Jennifer's arms at the elbow to keep the woman's hands from reaching her face. Her hands were stretched out wide, and Sherise knew the woman intended to scratch the hell out of her. With all her strength, she kept holding Jennifer's arms down while trying to kick her in the leg.
“I won't let you!” Jennifer screamed.
“I've already done it,” Sherise said back, struggling with every word. “You made your bed the second you picked my husband.”
“I'm gonna kill you!”
“Hey!”
Sherise jerked the second she heard that voice that she knew too well: Justin's voice. What was he doing here? She had checked his office and his assistant told her that Justin had a lunch meeting at the firm and would be unavailable until two in the afternoon. She should have assumed he'd told the girl to lie.
Justin pulled a reluctant but somewhat obedient Jennifer off Sherise and pushed her aside. He stared down at Sherise, his expression full of bewilderment and, to her pleasure, a little fear.
After staring at her in disbelief for a few seconds, he held out a hand to help her up, but she slapped it away.
“What are you . . . ?”
Sherise got herself up. “Wondering why I'm here with your mistress?”
Justin pressed his lips together as if he was going to express some anger and then stopped himself, realizing he had no right to.
“Sherise,” he said calmly, “we need to talk about this.”
“When?” she asked. “Because I can see that you're busy about to have lunch with your whore!”
Justin squinted and Sherise enjoyed this. She didn't want to hate him, but having him standing there just brought her anger out of her. He was lunching with his mistress. How could she not lash out at him?
“Please,” he said softly.
“Do you plan to ignore me?” Jennifer asked, standing just a few feet behind.
They both turned to her, but Justin stood in between the women.
“Don't talk,” he said. “You'll just make this worse. We're leaving.”
“What's the matter?” Sherise asked. “You aren't going to try and lie? I'm disappointed in you, Justin. You could at least try and tell me it's not what I think.”
He looked at her with sheer embarrassment written all over his face. “I don't think that's necessary.”
This hurt her. Sherise wasn't sure why, but the fact that he lacked the desire to even try to make her think he wasn't cheating on her almost broke her heart.
“Justin,” Jennifer said, “I need to talk to her alone. Just leave us alone.”
“Don't talk to him!” Sherise yelled, pointing her finger at the woman. Something about this woman giving her husband an order made Sherise livid.
“Calm down,” Justin ordered. “People are staring at us. Just come outside, now.”
“You're giving me orders?” Sherise asked. “That's how you think this is going to go?”
“I want to explain this to you,” he said.
He grabbed her arm, but she jerked away and brushed past him. He rushed to reach her just before she came face-to-face with Jennifer, who looked ready to resume their fight.
“Good luck finding a job after tomorrow morning,” she said with a wicked smile. “You're finished.”
Justin pulled Sherise away from her and ushered her toward the door.
The second they were outside, Justin began trying to explain.
“Save it,” she said. “I know how this got started.”
“How do you know?” he asked. “Did you ask her? Don't listen to her.”
“I know more than you do, you idiot. She played you, you know that?”
“What?”
“You probably thought you were being a player, sneaking around.” She laughed. “You were just a pawn, Justin. She targeted you.”
He opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something but just didn't know what.
“She slept with you to get back at me,” Sherise said. “She knows me.”
“That's ridiculous,” he said. “I'm not sure what she told you, but . . .”
“She's right.”
Jennifer took a few steps closer to them on the sidewalk beside the restaurant. Justin held his hand up to her.
“Just go away,” he said. “I can handle this.”
“I doubt that,” Sherise said.
“She's not lying, Justin.” Jennifer stood her ground like a woman who still believed she had a card to play. “I'm sorry, but she's right.”
He looked at her as if he was both confused and at the same time supremely disappointed because he understood.
“Now the next question,” Jennifer added with a smile, “is why? Sherise, you want to do the honors?”
“Bitch, if you don't get away from me and my husband!”
“A tit for a tat, Justin,” she taunted. “Your whore of a wife slept with my husband first—”
“Get away from here!” Sherise started for her again as Justin struggled to restrain her.
“What are you two talking about?” Justin grabbed Sherise by the arm and turned her to him. “What is she talking about?”
Sherise stopped struggling and looked him in the eyes. Her own were tearing up already, and she felt herself begin to tremble in fear. This was not how she wanted this to go, but she was a survivor, and adapting was the key to survival.
“Justin,” she said. “You're right. Let's just go. Let's go home and we'll talk about this.”
The expression on Justin's face as he went from astonished confusion to realization tore at the inside of Sherise. She said his name as he turned to look at Jennifer. He was starting to shake his head and she said his name again.
“This is . . .” He was searching for words. “This is . . .”
“It's fucked up,” Jennifer said. “I know. But it gets worse.”
Sherise felt weak all over as she lowered her head. She was looking at the ground as she pleaded with him.
“Please, Justin, let's leave. Let's just go. Not like this.”
“Just leave us alone, Jenny,” he ordered.
“Make her go away,” Sherise pleaded.
“You need to know this,” she said.
“It's not true!” Sherise yelled. “It's not true!”
He let go of her and his arms dropped to his sides. One hand raised up and cupped her chin. He lifted her face until their eyes met. She could see his pain and fear through her tears.
“What is she gonna say to me?” he asked. “What are you so afraid of?”
“I love you,” she said. “Cady is your daughter. She is yours, I swear to God.”
He blinked, inhaling sharply as he took one step backward, then another.
“She is yours,” Sherise repeated. “I swear, Justin.”
“I have proof,” Jennifer said. “She had that baby nine months after she slept with my husband.”
Sherise turned to her in a rage. “That baby's name is Cady, and Justin is her father.”
“Are you so sure?” Jennifer asked. “Because you didn't seem so sure the last time we spoke. I think you're full of shit.”
“Actually,” Sherise said, “I'm the one who has the proof now and there is no question. You have nothing.”
“Well,” she said, placing her arms across her chest. She nodded behind Sherise. “That appears to be something you and I have in common.”
Sherise swung around expecting to see Justin, but he was gone.
“Justin!” she screamed, panicking as she found him just as he closed the cab door behind him. “Justin!”
“It's only fair,” Jennifer said.
Sherise turned back to her. “You just remember that starting tomorrow morning, you will not only be out of a job, but you will be known around the country as yet another failed politician's worthless whore.”
Despite a quick flinch, Jennifer appeared unfazed. “I have a great divorce lawyer I can recommend to—”
Sherise slapped her across the face so quick she even surprised herself.
 
Erica rushed into Sherise's home, yelling her name.
“I'm here!” Sherise waved to her from the kitchen at the back of the house.
Erica sighed in relief. “You scared me. Your door was open.”
“I opened it for you.”
“I thought something bad had happened.” Erica entered the kitchen, looking around. She saw Cady sitting in her booster seat trying her best to eat a plate of corn. “No word from Justin?”
Sherise shook her head. She was leaning against the sink, biting her nail furiously.
“Have you been able to reach Billie?” she asked.
“No,” Erica answered. “I don't know what the hell is going on with her. I'll keep trying.”
After trying desperately to track Justin down at home, at work, and anywhere else he could be, Sherise called Billie and Erica for help. Billie had been unreachable, but once finding Erica, she told her everything. Erica left work early to come and help her.
“This is exactly why we wanted you to tell Justin first,” Erica said. “Dammit, Sherise. You let your need for revenge mean more than saving your marriage.”
“Really?” Sherise asked in disbelief. “You're going to do an I told you so right now? Is that what you came over for?”
Erica looked over at Cady, who had started making an excited fuss as she opened her arms wide. She was practically hopping out of her seat as Erica came over and kissed her on both cheeks before picking her up out of the chair.
“You told him that she's his, right?” she asked.
“I tried to,” Sherise answered. “He wasn't listening. He was in shock. That was why I wanted Billie to get the test results over here.”
“I don't know if she has them yet,” Erica said, “but I'm not sure looking on a piece of paper is going to make him feel better.”
“You know he can't be walking around acting all high and mighty,” she said angrily. “He cheated on me, too.”
“Sherise,” Erica warned, “this is not the time to get on a high horse or point fingers. Honey, you beg for forgiveness and patience.”
Sherise knew how hard this would be. She wasn't good at apologies, but she had never been in this position before. All she could think of was the look on Justin's face when he realized that Cady might not be his. It made her shudder.
“You should have seen him, Erica.” She walked over to them and handed Erica a napkin to wipe Cady's face. “He looked so . . . so lost. He looked so hurt and . . .”

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