The Wife He Never Wanted

A Night Out

A few hours earlier, before Richard received Helena's call.

"Helena, are you excited about going out? You need to get out of the house," Molly said, jumping around Helena's room, already dressed up.

Cindy arrived a few minutes later. Cindy and Molly had made plans two days earlier to drag Helena out of the house.

“Yay! We're going out and dusting off all that negative energy, my friend." Molly said.

Helena, Cindy and Molly had been childhood friends, growing up together in the same neighbourhood before Helena got married and moved into Richard's house. Since the wedding, she had drifted from them without meaning to.

Helena didn't see the point in stepping out. She was still heartbroken. But her friends had convinced her it was time to start going out, to try being happy again. Both of them knew exactly how unhappy she had been in that marriage, though every time they brought it up, Helena found some excuse to defend Richard.

While they touched up their makeup, Molly's phone buzzed. She glanced at it. “Our ride is here.”

They had agreed not to drive, in case they had a lot to drink. And that was the plan.

They walked into the club, found a table, and ordered drinks. Helena wasn't much of a drinker, but in the spirit of the night, she would allow herself a few drinks.

Molly stood by their table, dancing. “You will find a man hotter than Richard or we will find one for you.”

“Richer too,” Cindy added.

Helena sat there, blushing, wondering what it might be like to be with someone else. Her heart was still tangled with Richard. Letting go of him wouldn't be easy, but she was ready to see where the night would take her.

“Soon you'll graduate law school and become a brilliant lawyer, making your own money,” Molly said.

“And Richard will realize exactly what he lost," Cindy added.

“I don't know about all that,” Helena said calmly. “But let's see how it goes.”

Molly finished the last of her drink and hurried Helena to do the same. Once Helena had finished hers, Molly pulled her by the hand towards the dance floor, with Cindy trailing behind them.

While they danced, a man approached Helena. He was tall and broad-shouldered, dark hair that looked like he had just run a hand through it, and green eyes. "May I have this dance?”

Helena turned, her eyes widened. “Hey.”

“Hi, I'm Dominic."

“I'm Helena.”

“You don't look like you're having much fun over here. Rough night?"

"Something like that."

“Work. Annoying boss. Boyfriend?” Dominic asked.

"Just divorced." She looked toward Molly and Cindy, laughing together a few feet away. "They insisted I come out.”

"Sounds like good friends."

"The most stubborn kind." Helena smiled.

"So they dressed you up and dragged you out anyway." Dominic added.

"Pretty much." Helena shrugged. "I figured it was easier to go along with it than argue."

"Well," Dominic said, smiling, "for what it's worth, I'm glad they did. Because I got to meet you."

They danced for a while, the conversation drifting between small things. The music, the club, nothing that asked too much of her.

Moments later, Molly appeared beside them, breathless from dancing. "Alright, alright.” She turned to Helena with a smile. "Come on, one more round at the bar before we call it a night."

"Molly!" Helena laughed.

"One more," Molly insisted, already pulling her away. Dominic laughed and let her go with a small nod that said later.

At the bar, Molly ordered another round of cocktails, and Cindy joined them, still glowing from the dance floor. Caught up in the laughter and easy conversation, Helena got carried away as her friends tried to get her to relax, she didn't notice how much she had drunk until it was already too much.

She leaned into Molly beside her. "I'm really tipsy. I think I'm ready to go home."

"Already?" Molly pouted. "Okay. Let's get you home."

Helena excused herself to use the restroom first. In the restroom, she took out her phone, scrolled to Richard's name and called him.

While she was still on the line with him, Molly's voice called through the door. "Helena, are you okay?"

Startled, Helena quickly said into the phone, “Blue Moon club. I'm leaving now. Mom's on night duty, so I'm heading home." Then she ended the call before Richard could respond.

She splashed a little water on her wrists, and rejoined her friends outside.

The taxi pulled up outside Helena's house. She insisted she would be fine on her own, and didn't want them staying over with her or delaying to leave in case Richard decided to come.

"Call us if anything comes up," Cindy said, still watching her with a bit of worry.

"I will," Helena promised, stepping out of the car. She waved them off, watching the taxi pull away before turning toward the house, the cool night air doing little to clear the fog in her head.