22
Tandi considered driving away when she saw Jared’s SUV still parked in the driveway, but she had much too much to do. Inventorying the house was the first, most important, chore on her list. Jared knew she was coming—she had told him so—so this could only mean he had waited around to talk to her. This, she didn’t need, not after the restless night she’d had. It was just another of her many restless nights, but this time she tossed and turned because she ached to be made love to by Brent. If he could make her feel what she felt last night with their clothes on, damn, what would she feel if she was butt naked and he was inside her? No, she couldn’t sleep. She was too hot to sleep.
That look of burning desire she saw in Brent’s eyes, she had not seen in Jared’s in years. Yet, she had to wonder if it was only sexual gratification she wanted from Brent. Was there more to be had or, in fact, was Brent capable of giving her more? Something had gone wrong in his two marriages that he had to bear some blame for, but how much blame was his? While she already knew what Jared was capable of, the question was, now that he was willing to listen, was he willing to give her what she wanted emotionally? Was she willing to give him another chance when Brent was her dream come true? Wait a minute. Why was she even thinking about second chances? Hadn’t she already given Jared a chance? Why was she even confusing herself with these questions?
When she awakened that morning, she was determined to continue walking the path she chose. She decided she would give herself six months to explore her feelings about Brent. If, at the end of that time, she felt there might be a future with him, she would file for divorce from Jared. That she would do, whether Brent was in her life or not.
Not bothering to ring the bell, Tandi let herself in using her own key. If Jared was there and tried to pressure her into talking, she would leave. In the front hall, she stood and listened for sounds of where in the house Jared might be. She heard not a peep. In the living room the drapes were drawn against the daylight, rendering the house eerily dim and still, so still that Tandi could hear the soft whispered humming of the transformer for the doorbell, which sat hidden atop the protruding decorative molding above the door. Turning on the light in the living room, she left the drapes drawn as Jared had.
“Jared.”
He didn’t answer.
“Jared!” she called louder.
Again, he didn’t answer.
Maybe he wasn’t home after all. He could have driven his sedan to work, though it was unusual for him to leave his SUV parked outside the garage.
Tandi checked the unopened mail on the hall table. There was a postcard from Daina addressed to her and Jared. “I love it here, but it’s not home. Missing you all. Love, Daina.” I miss you, too. She really did miss Daina and couldn’t wait for her to come home. Shuffling through the rest of the mail, Tandi saw none addressed to her specifically. Michael Jared had been bringing her mail to her every night. As to be expected, Jared hadn’t opened any of his mail. He rarely did without her pushing him. The mortgage and the utility bills were all due but that wasn’t her concern anymore. She started to walk away, but then, thinking better of it, grabbed up the bills. If she didn’t take them and pay them, Jared would fall behind and ruin both their credits. She stuffed the envelopes down into her pocketbook and from it took a pen and pad on which to make a list of everything she was taking. No better place to start than the upstairs bedrooms.
At Michael Jared’s bedroom doorway Tandi surveyed the room. She would leave his room intact as he would be staying over often enough for it to remain so. His computer she would take, along with most of his clothes. Moving on down the hall, Tandi was surprised to see that her—no, Jared’s—bedroom door was closed. Usually, once they were up for the day, the door was always left open, but she was the one who used to leave it that way.
Tandi opened the door wide. This room, too, was dim. Slivers of daylight peeked around the sides of the blinds and through the slightly opened slats. There was just enough light to see that the rumpled covers were piled high on her side of the bed. Usually, she was the hoarder, but she wasn’t in bed. Jared was. He was asleep, lying on his back, his naked body exposed down to below his belly button. Tandi was really surprised. Jared never slept late during the week and he certainly never missed a day of work. Concerned, she went to stand over him. Jared was breathing, so he wasn’t dead. She took the time to look him over. She used to love running her hands all over his body, feeling him, exciting herself and him. Having naughty thoughts, she lifted the sheet and peeked at his penis. No doubt, he was blessed. Not surprising, Tandi’s desire for Jared was not dead, and the urge to touch him was tempting. Lowering the sheet, she stared at his face. He looked peaceful; his lips looked kissable. No, her desire for him was not dead. Bending down to him, she kissed him long and tender until he started to respond, opening his mouth to let her tongue in, sending a foul, nauseating odor of rancid alcohol up into her nostrils.
“Oh!” Tandi pulled back. “Jared!” She poked him in the shoulder. “Jared, wake up. Have you been drinking?”
Groaning, Jared slowly opened his eyes into slits. He grimaced as he tasted his own tongue.
“You smell awful. You’ve been drinking!”
Jared’s eyes stretched wide. “The rush of a splitting headache assaulted him as a wave of queasiness swept over him. He tried to sit up, but his right arm wouldn’t move—it was pinned down. Falling back, Jared felt like he was about to heave and have a heart attack at the same time.
“Jared, what’s wrong with—” Tandi’s eyes were suddenly drawn to the moving covers on the other side of the bed. Her eyes widening, her mouth opening, she stepped back from the bed to the door. She switched on the overhead light.
Seeing the startled look on Tandi’s face, Jared stared at the covers moving next to him. He could feel warm flesh moving up against his side. “Oh shit,” he said, yanking his arm from under Evonne’s head. He leaped off the bed, pulling the covers off Evonne’s face and naked body. That’s when it hit him, he was naked, too.
“Oh shit!” Jared quickly snatched up his briefs from the floor alongside the bed, yanking them on.
Tandi dropped the pen and pad. She felt like someone had thrown a bucket of ice cold water over her head. She froze.
“It’s not what you think,” Jared said. The pain in his head was screaming at him.
“Tandi,” Evonne said, sitting up, leaving her nakedness uncovered, “I can explain.”
In total disbelief, Tandi began backing toward the door.
Jared reached out for her. “It’s not what you think.”
Tandi slapped frantically at Jared to keep him from touching her. “What I think is that you and my ex-best friend are the scum of the earth.” Disgusted, she ran from the room.
Jared ran behind her. “Tandi!”
Running hard, Tandi rushed headlong down the stairs.
At the front door, Jared caught up with Tandi and grabbed hold of her arm. He spun her around. “Please, listen to me! I was drunk. I thought I was making love to you.”
“Liar!” She clawed wildly, digging her nails into his arms, trying to make him let go of her. “I hate you!”
“Tandi, I was hurting so bad, I didn’t know what to do. I . . .”
“I don’t care!”
“. . . I tried to drink my pain away. You know I don’t drink.”
“I don’t care what you were trying to do. Get your filthy hands off me! I hate you!”
“Tandi, please. I didn’t know what I was doing.”
“I don’t care! Let go of me!” She took hold of Jared’s middle finger and brutally pulled it back until he let go of her.
Jared ignored the pain in his finger. “Tandi, listen to me. Please, listen to me.”
She snatched her pocketbook off the table and seeing the mail, grabbed it out of her bag and threw it on the floor.
“Tandi, Evonne told me you were seeing another man!”
She whirled around and looked him dead in his bloodshot eyes. “That’s a goddamn lie!”
“She said you were seeing him for six months, and that’s why you wanted a divorce.”
“You’re stupid, Jared. You believed vicious lies out of the mouth of a snake.”
“But she said—”
“Tandi!” Evonne called from midway up the stairs.
Jared and Tandi both looked up at Evonne.
“Evonne, didn’t you tell me Tandi was seeing someone?”
Tandi glared up at Evonne, wearing Jared’s dark blue Mechanic on Duty T-shirt, which just covered her pubic patch. Tandi’s stomach churned, gnawing at her, making her ill. “My, Evonne, I think you’re showing a bit more than I need to see.”
Evonne tugged on the edge of the T-shirt. “Jared and I were drunk. We made a mistake. Let’s sit down and talk about—”
“I trusted you, Evonne. I thought you were my friend.”
“I am.”
“Didn’t you tell me Tandi was seeing another man?” Jared asked.
“That’s not what I said, Jared. You must’ve heard—”
“That’s a damn lie!” Jared started for the stairs. “What the hell are you doing?”
Tandi opened the front door.
Jared rushed back to her. “Tandi, she’s lying. I got drunk and—”
Slap!
Tandi’s open-handed slap caught Jared across the mouth, stinging his lips. Yet, the pain in his head was far worse than the sting of the slap. He grabbed his head with both hands. “Oh, God,” he moaned.
“You’re both dogs!” Tandi ran from the ugliness of their betrayal.