The Cheater

The Cheater

Lynn stared at the credit card statement so long her eyes hurt. It had to be some kind of mistake. She knew that her husband of five years bought her a bouquet of flowers for Valentines Day, but there was no possible way it cost $75. They bought a present for his mother together, so that only left one possibility.

She pushed the chair back and went into the file cabinet, pulling out credit card receipts and all statements for the last few months. There was only one suspicious charge on the credit card bills. As she began to look at the cell phone bill, her heart clenched painfully. A number she didn’t recognize took up four pages.

Who was John calling? Who had received a $75 floral arrangement?

Anger rushed over her as she gathered the evidence and placed it on the dining room table. She would sit there and wait for him to walk through the door and confront the lying, cheating snake, no matter how long it took. She picked up the telephone, and dialed the number that sprang from the pages, almost mocking her.

A woman’s voice answered, but Lynn couldn’t utter a word. She hung up abruptly, as tears began to pour from her eyes.

The sound of the front door made her heat beat erratically. He was home. The truth was going to come out whether she wanted to hear it or not. Lynn stood and faced her husband.

“Are you all right?” John asked, taking off his jacket and hanging it on the back of the chair.

She shook her head. “No, I’m not.”

“What happened?”

She sucked in a deep, steadying breath, grabbed the papers off the table, clutching them in her hand. “Why don’t you tell me?”

WC: 297, title not included.