THE WATCHER
988 Words
Vanessa began watching Nina.
Not obviously. She didn't follow her down the street or sit outside her apartment. She watched the way wives watch — through small details, through questions asked casually, through noticing what Adrian didn't say.
He comes home later now.
He checks his phone before bed.
He smiles at nothing.
She started keeping a mental log. Monday: home at 8:30, said he had dinner with a client. Tuesday: home at 9:15, said he was catching up on reports. Wednesday: home at 7:45, said nothing at all.
On Thursday, she went back to Cross Capital Partners.
She brought coffee — four cups, enough for Linda, for Adrian, for herself, and for Nina. She wanted to see Nina's face when she handed her the cup. Wanted to see if there was guilt there, or fear, or something else.
Nina accepted the coffee with a polite smile. "Thank you, Mrs. Cross."
"Vanessa, please. We're past formalities."
Nina nodded. "Vanessa."
They stood there for a moment, neither speaking. Vanessa studied her — the dark hair, the glasses, the way her hands were steady even though her eyes were not.
"How are you finding the job?" Vanessa asked.
"I like it. The work is challenging. Adrian is a good boss."
Adrian. Not Mr. Cross. Vanessa filed that away.
"He speaks highly of you," Vanessa said. "Says you're the best assistant he's ever had."
Nina's expression didn't change. "That's kind of him."
"He's not usually kind. You must be special."
The words hung in the air. Nina held her gaze.
"I just do my job," Nina said.
Vanessa smiled. "I'm sure you do."
She walked to Adrian's office. He was on the phone, his back to the door. She set his coffee on the desk and left without saying a word.
---
That night, Adrian didn't come home until 11 PM.
Vanessa was in bed, the lights off, pretending to sleep. She heard him in the bathroom — the shower running, the cabinet opening and closing. Then he slipped into bed beside her, careful not to wake her.
She felt the heat of his body, inches away. She smelled something on his skin — a different soap, not the one they kept in their bathroom.
Her soap, Vanessa thought. He showered at her place.
She lay still, her eyes closed, her heart pounding.
She didn't sleep.
---
Across town, Nina lay in her own bed, alone.
Adrian had left an hour ago. She could still feel his hands on her body, his breath on her neck. She could still taste him.
Her phone buzzed.
Adrian: I wish I could stay.
She typed back: I wish you could too.
Adrian: Tomorrow. Late night at the office?
Nina: I'll be there.
She set the phone down and stared at the ceiling.
You're falling in love with him, a voice whispered. And you're lying to him every day.
She closed her eyes.
She didn't sleep either.
---
Friday afternoon, Vanessa went to the hotel.
Not the one she used with Derek — the one from the receipt. The Meadowlark Inn.
She sat in the parking lot, watching the entrance. The inn was small, charming, the kind of place couples went to escape. She could imagine Adrian here, holding someone's hand, opening a door for someone who wasn't her.
She didn't know what she was looking for. A face. A car. A clue.
She didn't find anything.
But as she was leaving, she saw a familiar car in the rearview mirror.
Derek's car.
He was pulling into the parking lot of a different hotel — the one where they usually met. He parked, got out, and walked inside.
Vanessa's hands tightened on the steering wheel.
He's meeting someone, she thought. Is he meeting her? The same woman Adrian is seeing?
She didn't know. She couldn't know.
But she watched until he disappeared through the doors.
---
Derek walked into the hotel lobby and checked his phone.
Vanessa had texted him an hour ago: Same place. 4 PM.
He was early. He sat in the lobby, waiting. Ten minutes passed. Twenty. Thirty.
His phone buzzed.
Vanessa: Can't make it. Sorry.
He stared at the message. This was the second time this week.
He typed back: Is everything okay?
No reply.
He waited another ten minutes, then left.
He didn't see Vanessa's car in the parking lot. He didn't know she had been watching him from across the street.
---
That evening, Adrian and Nina worked late.
The office was empty. The city was dark. They sat on the couch in his office, not touching, just being close.
"Nina," he said.
"Mm."
"I told Vanessa I had a dinner meeting tonight."
"You lied to her."
"Yes."
She turned to look at him. "Does that bother you?"
He was quiet for a moment. "Less than it should."
She leaned her head on his shoulder. "What are we doing, Adrian?"
"I don't know."
"Are we going to keep doing it?"
He put his arm around her. "I don't know that either."
She closed her eyes. "I'm scared."
"Of what?"
"Of losing you. Of her finding out. Of —" She stopped. She had almost said of you finding out who I really am.
"Of what?" he asked.
She shook her head. "Nothing."
He kissed her forehead. "We'll figure it out. Somehow."
She wanted to believe him.
---
At home, Vanessa sat in the dark living room.
Adrian's car wasn't in the driveway. He was still at his "dinner meeting." She had called the restaurant he mentioned. They had no reservation under his name.
She wasn't surprised.
She pulled out her phone and scrolled through photos — old ones, from the beginning of their marriage. Her and Adrian at the wedding. Her and Adrian in Greece. Her and Adrian at a party, laughing.
She looked happy in those photos. She couldn't remember if she had been.
She deleted them all.
- Writer
