I get up, determined and ready for my mission.
In my pajamas, with a cup of coffee in hand, I march through the house and start the search.
I check his iPad, computer, and everything else I can think of. His Facebook account has nothing. Her email doesn’t autofill in his email account. And his drawers, office, and the garage have no sign of cheating. No receipts or pictures or mystery phones. I go over his schedule with a fine-tooth comb and his appointments match his calendars.
He’s quite good at this.
Sitting in his computer chair in his office, I tap my fingers against the leather armrests and contemplate.
A knock at the front door and the sound of it opening snatches my attention from sleuthing. “Hey!” Shawnee calls into the house.
“Hey, in here!” I shout at her but don’t get up.
“Well?” she asks when she gets to the office doorway, not bothering with “happy New Year” or any of that other nonsense. “How was the party? Did Elaine say anything to you?”
“Not a single word. Not even a hello. She pretended I didn’t exist.”
“Guilty bitch,” Shawnee whispers. Her honey-brown eyes narrow. “What have you searched here?”
“His iPad, laptop, work computer, Facebook and email accounts, and schedule. I even broke into his bank account on this computer and searched that but found nothing. Not a single expense that couldn’t be explained.” I wrinkle my forehead. “Though I will say, his Christmas gift for me from the jewelry store, a pair of earrings that seemed rather plain at first glance, were incredibly pricey. Beyond that, there’s no proof he’s having an affair.”
“He bought two things at the store. Something for her and something for you to cover for it,” Shawnee says.
“Oh God, you’re right.” My stomach turns as the realization I’m way out of my league slaps hard. I type in “Peoples Jewelers” on his computer and click on the website. When I find the earrings, my whole body tenses. “They’re sixty-nine dollars on sale for the month of December,” I gasp, feeling resistance when I try to get a large breath. “He spent over three hundred in there.”
“Sneaky,” she mutters and begins pacing the sizable office, tapping her finger against her chin. It’s her thinking tapping. “If he’s that smart, which I didn’t give him credit for being, there’s a chance you might not find proof.”
“But we know they called each other. We heard the phone call.”
“Yes, and that can be deleted from the phone”—she turns her head sharply—“but not from phone records. Do you have access to your cell phone bills? The actual hard copies?”
“Yeah, I think so.” A shiver of nervous energy creeps over me as I log into the account he takes care of with his share of the bills. I would make a terrible spy. “We don’t get the paper bills.” I click to sign in but it autofills with his name and password.
My fingers dart around with the mouse until I find what I’m looking for and print the bills for the last three months.
We sit and watch them print, not speaking. I don’t know what to say. I’m an idiot, might be a great start. But truthfully, I never imagined it was this bad. I thought he and Elaine might have kissed a few times or maybe flirted heavily. It didn’t occur to me that they were having a full second relationship.
The moment the printer finishes, she leans over the desk with me and types in a yoga studio. She prints the schedule.
“What are you doing?”
“In case he searches the printer for last job.”
“Oh,” I say unaware that was a thing. “Why are you so good at this?”
“Dateline.” She takes the yoga schedule out of the room while I clear the browser history in the computer, except for the yoga studio.
When I get to the kitchen, she’s stuck the decoy schedule to the fridge. I write down Brent and Elaine’s numbers from my phone, grateful for once that Rod’s and my contact lists merged a few years back with an accidental cloud situation neither of us understands to this day.
Shawnee slides my bowl of stocking chocolates toward us and we slowly devour chocolate-covered cherries from Purdys while we comb over the records for his cell phone.
She circles with red pen and I with black as we hunt for Elaine’s cell number and the house phone number for her and Brent.
“He talked to her five times this day and the last time was hella late. One in the morning? Who is talking to someone at one in the morning?” Shawnee turns the paper, making a swish noise, so I can see the date and time.
“That’s the last week of November. I was out with you and Liz at the Nutcracker ballet. Remember we went for drinks afterward, but Liz couldn’t have anything because she just figured out she was three months pregnant.” I bite my lip and try to recall that day with more clarity. “He had takeout left on the counter,” I say and stand, a memory slapping me in the face. “There were two plates. He said Brent came over and hung out for a bit, but I bet it was her.”
“What a slimy piece of shit.”
My eyes are drawn back to the page. “Yeah, look. He talked to her in the morning three times. Then in the afternoon once at four thirty. Then not again until one in the morning? They were organizing her coming here and then at one in the morning, she called on her way home, probably to double-check something.”
“Like the dishes in the sink,” Shawnee says.
“Yup.” I lean on the counter and consider if this is enough.
“Are you surprised that this affair is more than a kiss in Mexico?”
“Yes,” I admit too easily.
“Are you upset or relieved to know your marriage is officially over?” she asks.
“Maybe both,” I whisper and our eyes meet. We stare and I see the emotion in her from my terrible admission. “I mean, when I married him, I loved him. But now there’s no denying that we’re ten years in and I’m nowhere near where I wanted to be. I want kids and pets. He’s allergic to animals and I suspect hates kids.”
“He totally hates kids. Have you seen him with your niece and nephew? He’s awful,” Shawnee adds. “But is this enough proof for you? The jewelry store receipt and phone records don’t lie. You know that man bought far more than he gave you. But it’s also Rod. If you attack him, he’ll say some shit about your birthday gift and way to ruin it—”
“He totally will. He is good at this. Better than I gave him credit for. I feel sick. Do I even know him?” The thought pinches in my belly.
“And the truth is, he bought those gifts on the twenty-second of December. He is a last-minute shopper. He didn’t buy you a birthday gift. And why would he? You’ll be in Mexico for the week.” Shawnee’s reasoning is sound.
“The phone records are hard to explain though. He can try to say it was him and Brent but all I would have to do is ask Brent. It’s not like he’ll cover for him with his wife,” I point out but my tone isn’t convincing. This isn’t the smoking gun I wanted.
“Nope.” Shawnee shakes her head. “He’s busted. But is he busted enough for you to be satisfied?”
“I’m a bit numb right now. But yes, it’s enough. I need to figure out how to leave and where to go,” I say, sensing the tightening in my chest.