I called Harry later in the afternoon when I'd cooled off. I told him about my conversation with Justine, which inevitably made my temperature rise again. He told me he had somewhat come to the conclusion that Justine had told James about us, but agreed that I should have it out with her once and for all, at least to get the facts and ease my own mind about the whole matter. He offered to go with me, but I insisted this was something I needed to do on my own.
Penny got home around five-thirty, but I didn't really have time to give her all the details. I just told her I was meeting Justine at the coffee shop, and I'd tell her all about it later. Around a quarter 'til, I headed out. When I arrived, I looked around for Justine, but didn't see her yet. I went ahead and ordered myself a vanilla latte and picked a table by the window, shrugging out of my coat. I saw Justine walk in then, waving at me when she spotted me. I almost waved back, but decided that was too friendly for the mood she had put me in. Instead, I gave her a curt nod. I waited for her to get her coffee, chewing on my lower lip.
"Hi," she greeted, sliding into the seat across from me.
I blinked and said nothing.
"I guess I should just continue where I left off, huh?" she asked, looking down at her coffee cup.
"Yes, please," I answered, my jaw set.
Justine took a deep breath and folded her hands. "Well," she began. "Like I said, James had figured out about Harry on his own. I still don't know exactly how, I never asked him. But he asked me if I knew about him, and I told him yes."
I cringed, shutting my eyes tight.
"He seemed so genuinely hurt," Justine remarked.
For a second, I let the image of James being hurt settle into my brain. The thought of him realizing I was having an affair, with a school mate no less, someone I was practically forced to see everyday. For a fleeting moment, I put myself in his shoes and I felt sorry for him. This was a man who had taken care of me in my hour of need. Someone who had given me essentially everything I'd needed. Even before Harry had come along, I had started to pull away. But James had had no idea. As far as he was concerned, everything had been the same between us. I supposed my hanging around Harry had finally brought out some characteristics of mine that he hadn't recognized.
Recalling, however, the look on his face when he'd told me I had nine days to get out of the house, and the night he'd come home drunk and tried to seduce me before getting angry and bringing up my "boyfriend", shook me from my musings. And I refocused my thoughts on the task at hand - getting to the bottom of this.
"Anyway, after that we exchanged a few emails and texts," Justine continued. "And then he invited me to lunch again. I had no idea he was going to pick Mikado's."
"He was checking up on Harry?" I inquired.
"I wasn't really sure at first. I hadn't told James he worked there, but I didn't know if he had gotten that information on his own. At any rate, Harry hadn't been working. I figured he didn't work the lunch shift anyway, what with school and all."
"Correct."
"The next day he phoned me, confessing that he'd heard 'your little boyfriend' - his words," she claimed, using air quotes, "worked there, and I wanted to see what he was dealing with. I told him he shouldn't be dealing with anyone but you. You were his wife, and if he felt like you were being unfaithful, he needed to confront you about it."
I bit my lip and shook my head, turning my face toward the window. James of course had not confronted me. But I wondered what would have unfolded if he had. Would I still be with Harry? Would I still be getting a divorce? Or would I have crumbled and surrendered at James's mercy, begging for his forgiveness? I honestly could not answer any of those questions. I'd like to think I Harry and I would still be together, and the end result would basically be the same, but I couldn't guarantee that.
I hadn't realized Justine was still talking until I heard the words Harry and Halloween party.
"I'm sorry, say that again," I requested.
"I said that when you asked me to go with you to that Halloween party, I had to say no. But not for the reason I gave."
"What?" I furrowed my brows. "It wasn't a hot date?"
"Well," she swallowed, "it sort of was. But not with Drew."
Justine bowed her head, avoiding eye contact just as realization hit me. I felt my blood run cold. This couldn't be happening.
"You...and James?" I muttered.
"I didn't mean for it to happen, Tisa," she cried into her hands, her voice muffled. "But we started spending so much time together."
I shook my head again, unable to fathom the possibility that my husband and my friend had been having an affair. The very friend to whom I had confessed my own affair. I felt the bile rise in my throat. I wanted to take my hot coffee and toss it in her face.
"It didn't start out that way, please understand," Justine coaxed. "I was just someone for him to lean on, perhaps get some information from. He was really hurt."
"You've said that," I mentioned through clenched teeth.
Justine exhaled slowly. "He wanted to hire a private investigator."
"What?" I exclaimed.
"I don't exactly what all was going through his head. But I think he wanted to try to catch you in act. And find out as much as possible about Harry."
"You told him that was ridiculous, right?"
"I did," Justine nodded. "But he insisted. The next time we met for lunch, he brought a man with him. His name was Nick Trevino and he was a P.I. Apparently he had been to Mikado's the evening before to check out Harry."
"Oh Jesus," I remarked.
"I wondered at first why he even wanted me there, knowing it was awkward for me since I'm your friend. But I figured maybe he just wanted the moral support, even though I told him this wasn't a good idea."
"What did he say to that?" I asked.
"He didn't listen to me. He was stubborn and determined." Justine took another deep breath and let it out slowly. "Anyway, he hired Nick to check up on you and Harry, but he didn't know yet how to catch you. Nick said he had gotten a few photos of the two of you at school, but he had yet to find you kissing or doing anything together outside of school."
"Oh my God," I buried my face in my hands. Again, I wanted to throw up. This private investigator had taken photos of us? What else had he done?
"Nick convinced me to try to get any information from you that I could, anything that you and Harry might be doing together or have planned. The night you called me about the party..." Justine silenced herself for a moment, seeming to muster up the words to say.
"You made it up," I said. "The whole thing about your date with a guy from work. There is no Drew, is there?"
Justine shook her head. I should have known. What an idiot I was.
"I did actually have plans though," Justine confessed. "James wanted to meet for dinner. Up to then, it had only been lunch and drinks after work a couple of times."
I rolled my eyes trying to recall occurrences when James had said he'd had to work late. He hadn't been working late. He'd been out drinking with Justine.
"So when you mentioned the party," Justine continued as though she hadn't just slapped me in the face, "I admit I was a bit relieved. Not only could I see James, but Nick would have an opportunity to possibly see you with Harry."
"That's why James was fine with my going."
Justine nodded.
"He didn't give a shit," I cursed. "He just wanted to be with you."
"Tisa..."
"Were you already fucking him by this point?" I inquired a little too loudly.
"Tisa, lower your voice," Justine pleaded, gazing around the cafe.
"Well, were you?" I could feel the heat rising on my face as I clenched my fists.
"I...you're one to talk, Tisa! What a fucking hypocrite!" She gave me an awful go-to-hell look.
I stood and grabbed my coat from the back of the chair. "I think I've heard enough." I turned to walk out of the coffee shop, leaving my half empty cup on the table.
"We weren't sleeping together!" Justine professed.
I stopped in my tracks, feeling several sets of eyes on me. I shut my own as I turned around to face her again.
"It doesn't matter," I muttered. "Obviously everybody got what they wanted."
I was about to turn again to leave when Justine said, "There's something else I have to tell you."
"What?" I asked, dropping my shoulders in exasperation.
"Please." Justine gestured toward the empty chair. Hesitantly, I took my seat again, waiting for more words I wasn't sure I wanted to hear.
Justine pressed her lips together, taking a long pause before beginning again. "The morning after the party, James met Nick for golf. He had photos of you and Harry arriving at the party, and some of you leaving."
"So," I shrugged, recalling James sitting at the kitchen table in his golf clothes, telling me he was going to New York.
"He'd even followed you to Harry's and got pictures of the two of you kissing before you'd left in your car."
I pinched the bridge of nose. I wasn't sure at this point which detail of this entire conversation I was the most livid about. Or if I even cared at all.
"He was really angry," said Justine. "He called me, yelling into the phone that he was ready to kick you out of the house. Then he began sobbing, saying he'd given you everything and this was the thanks he got. After I finally got him to calm down, he said he had an idea. I didn't know what it was until he phoned me again later."
Justine eyed me, willing me to understand what she was getting at. Then it hit me. Again.
"He didn't go to New York, did he?" I asked in almost a whisper.
Justine shook her head slowly. I swallowed hard.
"He knows Harry stayed with me."
"Yeah," Justine nodded.
"And he stayed with you."
Justine was silent as she sucked in her lips and nodded once more.
"God dammit," I cursed under my breath. "Justine, I thought you were my friend."
I was on the verge of tears, yet they didn't seem ready to fall. The truth was, I wouldn't let myself cry. Because then I would be a hypocrite. I loved Harry. I had sex with Harry. I was having an affair with Harry. What gave me the right to be angry that James was doing the same with someone else?
"I am your friend, Tisa," whispered Justine. "That's why I'm telling you this. I've been avoiding you because I feel just awful about it."
"Sure you do," I said, my words dripping with sarcasm.
Justine exhaled again and took a sip of her coffee. I'd given up on finishing mine, figuring it was cold by now.
"You don't have to believe me, I guess," she finally voiced. "But I'm the one who got him to go home early. He wanted to stay a week. But I was so overcome with guilt, I couldn't stand it any longer."
I smirked as I looked out the window again.
"I told him to try to talk to you. To finally get it all out in the open. I admit, I enjoy his company, Tisa. But I could tell he still loved you. He didn't want your marriage to be over."
I shut my eyes tight, feeling the first teardrop fall down my cheek.
"Did you know he came home mad at me because I was in my pajamas?" I asked her. "He wanted to go to dinner. So I changed clothes, feeling bad that I hadn't been more excited to see him. He took me to Mikado's."
"He told me that later. I swear, that was not my intention. I wanted him to talk to you one on one."
"Of course Harry wasn't working," I said. "I had just been at his place. But I'm sure James was hoping to confront him. As it turned out, his roommate, Zack was our waiter."
"I'm sorry," murmured Justine. "I really am."
I sat slumped over in my chair, trying to process everything I'd been told so far. But I still had some questions.
"Did you know about the night he went to Mikado's and saw Harry, then came home drunk?"
"Yes," she sighed, closing her eyes. "You had told him you wanted a divorce."
"But you weren't with him," I remarked.
"No. I had actually told him we needed to cool it for a while. He called me saying he wanted to see me, but I told him it wouldn't be smart. I didn't know he'd show up at Mikado's."
"So, this man...this man who came to my house to serve me with divorce papers. He was with you when you called me. Is this that Nick fellow?"
Justine bit her lip, whether it was to bide time or she was trying to decide what to say, I wasn't sure. I didn't expect to hear the answer she finally gave me.
"That's Glenn Goodner. He's a divorce lawyer. He was my divorce lawyer."
My eyes widened, taking in the truth.
"From your divorce from Chris?" I inquired.
"Yes," she replied. "James asked me to contact him and I did. He's hired him to be his lawyer."
Once again, I groaned, running my hand down my face. "He's not going to make this easy on me, is he?"
Justine shrugged. "It doesn't have to be hard, Tisa. I think right now, he's waiting for your to sign the papers."
I swallowed. I knew I needed to sign them. I'd just been putting it off until the holidays.
"Is that why you called me?" I wanted to know. "Did he ask you to get me to hurry up?"
"No, Tisa," Justine shook her head. "He doesn't even know I called you."
I wasn't sure if I believed her. Everything had been a lie. I didn't know what I believed anymore. I was seething, though I wasn't even sure what I was the most angry about. I just wanted to go home. Back to Penny's.
"I have to go," I announced, standing up once again.
"Tisa, if you believe anything I've told you, please let it be that I am not trying to hurt you. I felt bad about this whole situation. That's why I called you. I was really drunk that night at Mikado's. But I think deep down I was ready to tell you the truth."
I narrowed my eyes at her. "Whatever, Justine. Who the fuck gets drunk with her divorce lawyer?"
I stormed out of the cafe, almost slamming into another woman walking in.
"So sorry," I muttered, not stopping to hear her response.
I walked back to Penny's apartment, shaking from head to toe. I felt like I could pass out, and I might would have had it not been for my determination to get home and collapse on the bed. Which was exactly what I did.
***A/N***
So there's the big reveal. What do you think? Let me know if you see any holes in the story. I tried my best to make sure there were none, but, it happens I guess.