This happened today. Maybe it had happened before. Maybe there was more. She needed to know everything before she did anything. She went back one week. Same thing. 9:52 a.m. Derek and the same woman in their bedroom on their bed acting like Simone didn’t exist, like their marriage didn’t exist.
Like seven years of love and trust and promises meant nothing. Two weeks back again, same woman, same bed, same betrayal. Simone went back through two months of footage. It happened every single week, sometimes twice a week, always in the morning after Simone left for work. Always the same woman. Dererick had been doing this for months, right under her nose, in her own home, in her own bed. She felt sick.
She rolled down her car window and breathed in the cool air, trying not to throw up. Her phone buzzed with a text message. She looked down at the screen. It was from Derek. Hey babe, what do you want for dinner tonight? I can pick something up on my way home. Love you. Love you. The words made her want to throw her phone across the parking garage.
How dare he say that to her? How dare he act like everything was normal? How dare he lie so easily. Her hands moved across the phone screen before her brain could catch up. She typed back, “Anything is fine. Love you, too.” She hit send and immediately felt disgusted with herself. But she couldn’t let him know that she knew. Not yet.
She needed time to think, time to plan, time to figure out what to do next. Simone sat in her car for another 30 minutes thinking. She was a smart woman. She had a successful career in commercial real estate. She made good money. She was independent and strong. But right now, she felt broken. She felt stupid for not seeing this coming.
Had there been signs? Had she missed something? Was she a bad wife? Was she not enough for him? No. She stopped that thought immediately. This wasn’t her fault. She had been a good wife. She had loved him, supported him, trusted him. She had done nothing wrong. This was all on Derek.
He was the one who chose to cheat. He was the one who chose to betray her. He was the one who destroyed their marriage and he would pay for it. She didn’t know how yet, but she knew one thing for certain. She was not going to be the crying, broken woman who begged her husband to stay. She was not going to be the fool who forgave him and took him back.
She was not going to be the victim. She was going to be the one who came out on top. She was going to be the one who walked away with her dignity, her money, and her life intact. And Derek, Derek was going to lose everything. Simone started her car and drove home. When she walked through the door at 5:30 p.m., Dererick was in the kitchen making dinner.
He smiled at her like he always did. Came over and kissed her cheek like he always did. Asked about her day like he always did. And she smiled back, kissed him back, told him about her day like she always did. But inside, she was already gone. Inside, she was already planning. Inside, she was already three steps ahead of him.
Dererick had no idea what was coming. He had no idea that the woman he’d been lying to for months was about to become his worst nightmare. That night, after Dererick fell asleep beside her, Simone lay awake staring at the ceiling. She thought about all the mornings she’d kissed him goodbye. All the time she told him she loved him.
All the time she trusted him completely. All of it felt like a joke now. She’d been living in a fantasy while he’d been living a double life. She turned her head and looked at him sleeping peacefully next to her. He had no guilt on his face. No stress, no worry. He thought he was getting away with it. He thought she was clueless.
Leave a Comment