7: A friend like Margo

~ SIENNA ~

This afternoon when I dropped off the divorce papers at Harry’s office, I could tell he was surprised that I had signed them without contesting his terms, even if he tried not to show it. But before we could talk, Cassy appeared and I knew my time there was up.

With him here, we could finally have the much needed conversation about our divorce, how to inform our families, and our now separated futures. It was a good thing so why was my heart beating so fast? Probably because Margo was here too and they had never gotten along well.

Finally, I heard the creak of the living room door as it opened. Harry walked in but he wasn’t alone. His site manager and mistress, Cassy, was beside him, holding his arm like a lifeline. The sheer disrespect!

Harry’s eyes darted to Margo on the couch but he was late because hers were already pinned on him. I looked sternly at Cassy, memories of her slap replaying in my mind against my will. She raised her chin, returning my scowl tenfold.

Oh dear, this was going to be messy. And I hate messy.

“What are you doing here?” Harry finally broke the silence. We all knew exactly who he was talking to.

“I should be asking you that, Mr. Thimble. Did you both miss your way to your hotel?” Margo snapped back, standing from the couch, comfort show forgotten.

I was first mortified at the name calling, then relieved when I realized Harry didn’t know the context of the name, Mr. Thimble.

“I’m in my house, Margo. I can’t say the same for you.”

“Well, I’m in my best friend’s house. After her so-called husband abandoned her for weeks in a bad state, someone had to take care of her.”

“How kind of you,” Harry taunted. “You took a break from your-“

“Oh, shut up-“ Margo was not going to let him finish.

“Stop it, you both!” I shrieked, pressing my palms to my ears. “Can we not do this right now?”

Margo and Harry fell silent, eyes shooting daggers at each other. I knew both of them enough to know that this was a pause not a stop.

“Harry, can we talk privately?” I needed to know why he was here with Cassy. Yes, we were divorced but I didn’t need his affair rubbed in my face like a makeup foundation. There was no reason to bring her home knowing I would be here.

“Like he is not going to tell me every detail later,” Cassy spoke for the first time, her sing-song voice as fake as her lips.

“No one spoke to you, home wrecker,” Margo fired at her. “Shut that hole in your face. It’s only good for taking díck — little díck.”

Oh my God! Margo was going to make things worse for me with her sharp tongue. I knew she was only trying to stand up for me but still…

“I always told you to stay away from her,” Harry barked, rage clouding his features as he left Cassy’s side to face me squarely. “She's a bad influence. I can bet she is the one who lured you into cheating on me-“

“Harry, for the umpteenth time, I did not cheat on you! You have refused to share the details of the sender of those pictures. If you’re not going to let me defend myself, then stop fúcking accusing me!” I was royally pissed.

Harry was quiet for a while before speaking. “I want her to leave.”

“Harry, you can’t do that…” I tried to reason with him. Margo had a very comfortable home to return to but I didn’t want her sent out embarrassingly like this.

He turned to Margo. “Leave my house right this minute or I’m going to call security to bundle you out!”

My heart jumped to my throat at the mention of security. Involving security was a sure fire way to escalate the situation and that was the last thing I wanted.

I felt something furry at my feet. It was Cakes, my pure bred Pomeranian with immaculate white fur. The ruckus must have startled him and he came to find me. I picked him up and began stroking his soft fur, causing him to relax a bit.

Cakes was a funny story. After my second miscarriage, Harry’s mom gifted me a dog to help me develop ‘nurturing instincts’ so that my rainbow baby would see I was a good mother and want to stay. Yeah, that happened just days after my miscarriage when I was still in so much physical and emotional pain. Anyone in this world could think of the worst person they know and Bianca Joseman would still be way worse.

What she didn’t know was that pets were not new to me and I grew up with lots of them… cats, dogs, bunnies, even a parrot at one time. As an only child, my parents were always looking for new ways to keep me engaged. A room full of toys, a rotation of pets and frequent vacations did the trick. The only reason I didn’t keep a pet before hers was because Harry insisted he didn’t like them, though he didn’t seem to have a problem with me keeping the one from his mom.

Regardless of our introduction circumstances, I fell in love with Cakes. He was patient, playful and super fast for his short legs. This beautiful dog became my friend and kept me company all the times when Harry was either absent or absently present.

People who meet him on our walks comment that Cakes is an unusual name for a dog — and it is, but that’s a story for a time when my heart is not threatening to combust from the tension of being in a room of four people where each person hates at least one person.

With every second Margo spent still here, Harry’s fist tightened harder. My best friend’s eyes searched mine. She was only going to listen to me.

“Please, leave,” I mouthed to her.

She was only going to listen to me — but not without an argument. “Leaving you alone with these-“

“Margo, please,” I pleaded.

“Promise me you’ll be fine.”

“I will.”

“Let me grab my bag,” she said to no one in particular as she ran upstairs.

The rest of us waited in uneasy silence until she reappeared with her stylish croc leather bag. She gave me a hug, whispering in my ear to call her if I needed anything and then she left.

“Harry, why is she here?” I asked immediately the door clicked shut behind Margo.

He had the audacity to look puzzled. “Well, she needs to start feeling familiar with her future home. My mother is also visiting soon and I thought it'll be great for Cassy to meet and bond with her, as most women do with their man’s mother.”

His first sentence was hurtful enough but the second one snatched the breath out of my lungs. God, please no. I can’t deal with Mrs. Bianca, especially at this time. I also didn’t miss his jab at the strained relationship between his mom and I.

“Harry, can we talk privately?” I tried again. This new information just made our conversation even more urgent.

“Not right now, Sienna. I have a mission to accomplish,” he answered, winking at Cassy.

She laughed at that, her laughter as fake as always. “That’s right, darling. You’re giving me three órgasms tonight, nothing less.”

“We have all night, baby. Let me show you around first,” he said, placing a hand on her waist and leading her out of the living room.

I stood frozen, watching them disappear down the corridor, my chest burning like a volcano had just erupted in it.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

When I was finally ready for bed, I chose the bedroom farthest away from the master bedroom where I knew Harry and Cassy would spend the night. I didn’t need to hear their moans as they ‘accomplished their mission’.

Out with others, it was easy to put up a strong face, but as the lights went off and I laid in bed with Cakes, I couldn’t pretend. I couldn’t lie to myself. My heart was broken beyond repair.

I had married my college sweetheart hoping for a happily ever after. But here I was, crying my eyes out while he gave another woman órgasms on our matrimonial bed. I wondered when it all started to go wrong. I wondered what I could have done better. I wondered who was behind the pictures that broke up my marriage. So many questions, so few answers.

Cakes whined sympathetically as he tried to lick my tears. I smiled weakly, rubbing his small head. “You must be sick of my cries by now, Cakes. I’m sorry for always being so miserable.”

I was finally drifting into sleep on my tear stained pillow when I heard Cassy’s terrified scream.