The Good Liar (Infidelity #1)

by C.P. Harris

“Do I even want to know where you’ve been?” I asked, knowing I had no right to. There was the sound of fabric, and then a thunk as what I guessed was his coat hitting the sofa. I couldn’t turn to him. Couldn’t even face his reflection in the glass doors. I kept my gaze downcast. “I could ask you the same,” he said, “but I’d rather not know.” His tone was limp, tragic, deserving of its own ballad, and my chest constricted from the pain of hearing it. “It’s always the worst at night,” he said, getting straight to the excruciating part. “When I don’t have a busy day to distract me. When I don’t have your busy day, or Daniel’s, to bring me comfort, because then I know at least he doesn’t have you.” He exhaled. “But at night, I imagine him holding you. His arms around you in bed, testing the waters to see if you’re in the mood. I tell myself you’re not, because I’ve been more than taking care of your needs. But still he holds you, and I imagine you pretending it’s me, and while that soothes my ego, it does nothing for my fracturing heart, because whether you’re pretending to want him or not, whether it’s my face you’re seeing instead of his, he does in fact have you. And the sad part is, he doesn’t even appreciate it.”