In Salem, Massachusetts, where the air is filled with mysticism and secrets, Antonia Daley's life takes a tumultuous turn. Engaged to the charming Dallas McCoy, Antonia believes she has found her happily ever after until she stumbles upon a shocking...
A few hours later, he was back in the parking lot of Rose Dental, leaning against his car with Watson on his leash beside him, watching as the employees filed out and locked up. Antonia had sent him a screenshot of Abigail's Facebook profile picture, and he was once again struck by the fact that Abigail, Dawn, and Antonia were all very similar-looking. He definitely had a thing for blondes with short hair. When he saw Abigail walk over to her car, he straightened up and approached her, making sure her co-workers were still around so she wouldn't feel trapped. "Abigail Rose?"
"Yeah?" She looked up in surprise. "Can I help you?"
He pulled out his card and handed it to her. "I was wondering if you'd talk to me about Dallas McCoy." He watched as her face flushed and her lip curled, but she nodded shortly and gestured to a cafe with outdoor tables up the street.
"Yeah, I got a half hour to kill before my spin class; you can buy me a coffee." She turned on her heel and walked away."
"Sure." He hurried to catch up with her. "You hired Kitty Fontaine to look into him?"
"Me and a couple of other girls he fucked over, yeah." She nodded again. "Who hired you?"
"His fiancee." He admitted.
"So she found out about his cheating then." She smirked.
"Yeah, he slept with her sister, and she saw the messages."
"Huh, he's getting sloppy." She sat down at a table, and he sat across from her; Watson tucked himself between his feet, and he rubbed his ears.
"Why didn't you tell Toni what was going on?" He asked curiously.
"Are you kidding?" She snorted. "He cheated on me with her, and what's the saying? When you stop being the mistress and become the girlfriend, you create an opening. Or something like that." She flicked her hand dismissively.
"Toni didn't know he had a girlfriend. From what I understand, he chased her for a few months before she agreed to date him." They both stopped talking as a server approached them for their orders; when she took them and walked away, Abigail sighed and stretched her legs out in front of her.
"If she didn't know, then I can't blame her for that; the guy is a master manipulator and narcissist, at least according to my shrink. But I'm pretty bitter about the whole thing, so I'm biased.
"Can I ask what happened? How did you guys meet?"
"I was the receptionist at the station; he got transferred to Station Two after the drama with Dawn. I'm guessing you talked to her?" The server came back with their coffees; they both thanked her and took a sip. Abigail let out a happy sound as she did. "Best coffee in town, I swear."
"I did; she isn't taking part in any of this?
"No, I had this to fall back on. I hate dentistry with a passion, but both my parents are dentists..." She rolled her eyes. "But she didn't have anything, and he ruined her reputation at the Fire Department. She got her real estate license in desperation. It turns out she's really good at it, and she refuses to do anything to make herself a target again."
"Okay, so how many of his exes have an issue with him?"
"There are three of us. Me, Regina, who was his girlfriend before Dawn, and his ex-wife, Savannah." She chewed her lip. "He's a serial cheater with a sex addiction you wouldn't believe."
"Dawn said. She said he cheated on her constantly, but outside the cheating, there were no other red flags. Was it the same for you?"
"Yeah, He was an amazing boyfriend. Kind, loving, caring. He did little things for you and went out of his way to make you feel special. That's why it was such a blow-up when the cheating was outed. It was just total heartbreak and betrayal like I've never felt before." Abby's mouth was a thin, hard line. "He enjoyed it."
"Oh yeah, he watched me break down and had no expression on his face. When I finally quieted down, he was as cold as ice and said I had two choices: I could accept it, and we would move forward or we could break up." She shrugged. "I left. But we worked at the same place, and he went out of his way to flirt with every woman who walked into or worked in the building. I kept having breakdowns and calling in sick. I ended up getting fired.
"So he was cheating on you with Toni but told you that if you accepted it, you could stay together?"
"He knew I wasn't going to stay. He made it clear he wouldn't give her up, and I would be a side piece. He also made it seem like she knew."
"I've known Toni since she was fifteen; I can personally guarantee you, she didn't know. She thought her high school sweetheart cheated on her, and it broke her; she would never do that to someone else." He finished his coffee and sat back again. "Did he buy you gifts?"
She thought about it for a minute. "Flowers and stuff like that. Nothing big or expensive."
"Did you know he'd been married before?"
"No. That was a surprise. I have him on my old Facebook account so I could keep an eye on him, and I was scrolling through his friend's list, basically sending a private anonymous message about his cheating to every short-haired blonde. I heard back from Dawn, Savannah, and Regina. Dawn gave her story, dropped out of the group chat and asked us to leave her out of it. When Savannah gave us her story, we were shocked." She looked at her phone and stood up. "I have to go."
"Could I get Regina and Savannah's contacts?" He stood up as well. "I'd like to talk to them."
"I have your card; I'll pass your contact info on to them; they can get in touch if they want." She paused for a moment and then looked at him seriously. "Don't let your friend confront him. It won't end well."
*Copyright: All Rights Reserved, Stephanie Myrick, 2024. Posted to Wattpad ONLY*
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