Ex boyfriend
797 Words
Reed
My heart fluttered like it always had when she came home. Maybe today, a foolish voice whispered in my head. Maybe today she will smile at me.
I suppressed that prayer and followed right behind William.
Wendy walked into the bright hallway. She was busy taking off her expensive designer coat.
She looked breathtakingly beautiful, as she always did. Her ocean blue eyes shimmered like sunlight across clear water and her long brown hair was perfectly styled. And her naturally flushed lips, painted with red, were pressed together in a line.
“Mommy, look! I got a Transformer for my birthday!” William cheered loudly.
He ran right up to her and reached his little arms up to hug her legs.
Wendy let out an annoyed sigh and gently pushed him away by his small shoulders.
“Not right now, William.” She snapped. “I have a headache . Go play with Nancy.”
William stumbled back a step as his little face crumpled and eyes shone with tears.
Every protective instinct in my body screamed. But I blamed myself for all the things William lacked. It was because I forced Wendy.
“Nancy.” I called out, trying to suppress the grief in my voice. “Take William to his room to play with his new toy, please.”
Nancy hurried over, taking William's hand and leading the heartbroken boy away.
Wendy didn’t care. She walked right past the spot where her crying son had been standing and marched straight up to me.
“Why did you do it?” She demanded.
I just looked at her, completely drained. “Why did I do what, Wendy?”
“Don’t play dumb with me, Reed.” She crossed her arms and glared at me with those beautiful eyes that held absolutely no love for me. “Why did you veto Logan’s promotion today?” She yelled.
My jaw clenched so hard it ached.
It was our son’s birthday and the very first thing she cared about when she walked through the door was her ex-boyfriend.
“Logan is severely underqualified for the position of Regional Director.” I said calmly even though my heart was bleeding. “He failed to meet his quarterly targets for the last six months. It was a simple business decision.”
“That is a total lie and you know it!” Wendy raised her voice higher. Her beautiful face was flushing red with hot anger. “He has worked so hard for this company! You only vetoed his promotion because you are petty and jealous!”
Suddenly… she was right. I was pretty and I wanted to kill Logan. Not because he deserved it but because he had her.
But I swallowed the words down in my throat. “I am the CEO of this company, Wendy. I don't get jealous of my employees.”
“You do, Reed. And because of that, he is completely distressed!” She yelled, taking a step closer to me and pointing a finger at my chest. “He… He is at the bar right now, trying to drink away the horrible humiliation you caused him!”
I stopped listening to her words and just stared at her face.
I saw the slight, messy smear of red lipstick just outside the line of her mouth. I saw the way her perfectly pinned hair was slightly tangled at the nape of her neck.
All the fight bled out of me. There was no anger left. Just a bitter, hollow ache.
“It is our son's birthday, Wendy.” I whispered, almost begging her to hear me. To see me. “Can we please discuss his career tomorrow?”
“No, we can't!” She insisted stubbornly and tilted her chin at me. “You are going to call HR tomorrow morning and approve his promotion, Reed. You are going to fix it.”
I didn't argue. I just stepped into her space, moving so slowly she didn't have time to pull away.
Her eyes widened. She slowly looked up into my eyes in shock.
I didn't know what she saw there exhaustion, defeat or heartbreak but whatever it was, it made her lips part in silent surprise.
"He was at the bar." I said very calmly. "Is that right?"
"Yes."
My hand trembled as I raised it. I didn't want to touch her, didn't want to know the truth but I couldn't stop myself.
I gently brushed my thumb against the corner of her mouth, swiping away the smeared red lipstick.
Then I leaned down, closing my eyes as her scent washed over me. She smelt of alcohol and expensive vanilla.
“Smells like whiskey…” I whispered softly. “Was Logan buying?”
- Writer
