When the Mist Clears, Love Is Gone

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We were out for a team-building dinner.

My eyes fell on a young couple by the window. The girl was carefully peeling a shrimp for the boy.

My colleague sighed with envy. See? This is why its better to just watch other people be in love.

Hey, Nathan, she said, pointing at the couple. Does Isla ever peel shrimp for you like that?

I was about to say that Isla was allergic to shrimp. In the five years wed been together, shrimp had never once appeared on our dinner table.

But then the girl turned her head, smiling, and my world froze.

My expression hardened, the blood turning to ice in my veins. And then, I let out a sharp, humorless laugh.

There she was. Isla, who was supposedly deathly allergic to shrimp, beaming as she took a half-eaten piece right from the boys mouth.

...

The boy flinched, pushing her away gently. Hey, people are watching! Have some decency!

Islas eyes crinkled, her tone dripping with affection. Whats there to be afraid of? Im kissing my own boyfriend.

Her voice, usually a comfort, now sent a shard of pain through my chest. I watched her take the boys hand, her face a mask of tenderness.

Why are you so shy? she murmured. Completely different from how you are in bed.

My colleague started gossiping beside me. Wow, kids these days. No shame at all. Talking about bed in public.

My feet felt like they were encased in lead. My chest heaved, the shock of betrayal a physical blow threatening to burst from my ribs. My eyes were locked on them, on Isla and this boy, flirting and laughing. I pulled out my phone, snapped a photo, and then opened my chat with her. A message from thirty minutes ago stared back at me.

[Honey, I have to work late tonight.]

[Don't wait up for me for dinner.]

[Love you.]

But as I finally reached the restaurant entrance, I heard the boys voice, laced with complaint.

How much longer do we have to be a secret? he asked. My grandpas birthday is next month, and my mom keeps asking me to bring you home to meet everyone.

I cant exactly, and each word was a hammer blow to my heart, tell them Im the dirty little secret you keep on the side. Make my whole family a laughingstock.

I stopped dead in my tracks.

I had assumed the boy was just some innocent kid, an unwitting pawn in all this. I thought that if it came to a confrontation, I would deal with Isla, and then quietly let him know hed been lied to. No need to drag an innocent person into our mess.

Ah. So thats how it was.

That made things much easier.

A smirk touched my lips as I heard Islas soothing reply.

Dont worry. What I owe you Ill make it all up to you. I promise.

I took a deep breath and gently removed my colleagues hand from my arm.

Wait here for a second, I told her. Theres something I need to take care of.

Before she could react, I was at their table. I grabbed the glass of orange juice and threw it in Islas face. She stared at me, utterly stunned, as I smiled.

Well, what a coincidence, Isla.

Cheating on me at the same restaurant as my company dinner. Should I praise you for your choice of venue, or my gaze drifted to the pile of empty shrimp shells, the irony thick enough to choke on, for suddenly getting over your deathly shrimp allergy?

Isla!

I reached for the other glass of juice, but her hand shot out and clamped around my wrist.

Nathan! Let me explain!

[ To see how Nathan gets his revenge, unlock the next chapter. ]

I looked down at the hand gripping my arm. The wedding band on her ring fingera matching set to my owngleamed under the restaurant lights. A flicker of panic crossed her face, and the rage Id been suppressing surged anew.

Before she could utter another word of explanation, I tore my arm from her grasp and slapped her hard across the face.

How dare you hit her!

The boy scrambled from his seat, shoved me hard, and stood protectively in front of Isla, shouting at me. Who the hell do you think you are? You have no right to touch my girlfriend!

I just looked at him, a bitter laugh bubbling in my throat. My eyes met Islas complex gaze. I calmly took a napkin from the table, wiped my wrist where she had touched me, and smiled at her.

Why dont you tell him? I said, my voice dangerously low. Tell him exactly who I am. And whether or not I have the right to hit you.

Islas expression shifted from shock to disbelief, and now, seeing my aggression and the boys defiant stance, she made her choice. She shielded him, stepping between us.

Nathan, it takes two to tango.

She pulled the boy behind her. My colleague had rushed to my side. Nathan, you need help?

I just shook my head, my attention fixed on Isla.

Weve been together for five years, married for two, she said, her voice suddenly steady. Have you ever once considered your own faults in this relationship? She met my eyes without flinching. I admit, I relied on you to get a foothold in this city. My success is because of you. But that doesnt give you and your entire family the right to look down on me forever.

She stepped closer. I can apologize. I can even go home with you right now. Her face was a canvas of conflict. But you will not lay a hand on Dylan. Hes innocent. Even now, she was defending him. Hes young, he cant have his name dragged through the mud. And his grandfathers health is poor, he cant handle the stress. Whatever is between us her eyes darted from me to my colleague, who was glaring at her, we can discuss it at home.

Listening to her well-reasoned speech, every word a shield for the boy she called Dylan, was laughable.

Five years together, married for three. When she started her business, I was the one begging for favors, calling in every connection I had. My parents leveraged their own relationships for her. Her entire startup capital came from a loan my parents took out against their own assets.

Back then, whenever she talked about it, her eyes would well up with tears as she swore to me. Nathan, I owe you everything. For the rest of my life, Ill be good to you, and to your family.

Now, that same history had been twisted into this: Yes, I relied on you. But that doesnt mean you can let your family disrespect me.

I stared at the woman I had loved for five years. I thought I could handle this calmly, but her words were a vice around my heart, squeezing until I could barely breathe, barely stand. Then, I heard my colleagues voice, thick with righteous anger.

Are you f*cking kidding me? So you use my boss to get on your feet, and now that youve made it, youre tired of him and want to trade up for a younger model? And youre trying to pin this on him? She scoffed. Who the hell do you think you are?

My colleague stormed past me and got right in the boys face. And you! Youre a homewrecker, and youre proud of it? She pointed at the designer necklace around his neck. Let me guess, my bosss money paid for that piece of trash too, right?

She was furious. Take it off! Give it back to him! She lunged for the necklace. The boy shrieked in terror. Isla grabbed my colleagues wrist and threw her aside. The table crashed over, dishes shattering on the floor.

Nathan! Isla screamed. Is this how you were raised?

The boy, now nestled in Islas arms, sobbed. Isla and I are in love! She doesnt love you anymore, Nathan! She doesnt love you!

I watched my colleague hit the floor, still cursing. Ill kill you, you shameless cheater and your little homewrecker! She scrambled up, ready to fight again, but I suddenly felt tired. It was all so pathetic. I stepped in front of her, shielding her from them. I looked at Islas wary face and said one thing.

Apologize to my friend.

She looked at me in disbelief.

Isla, I thought my heart would break, but seeing someone elses fury on my behalf had given me a strange clarity. Apologize. To my friend.

Youre insane! she yelled.

The moment the words left her mouth, I swung my briefcase, slamming it into her head. I grabbed the boy by his hair and smashed his face into the corner of a nearby table.

Isla, I snarled. Im not letting you get away with this.

Then I turned, took my colleagues arm, and walked out of the restaurant.