Steven?
I let out a dismissive laugh. “Good. Let him be angry. It’s decided, then.”
Jacob was transferred in, and he didn’t disappoint. He spent the entire afternoon chattering away, catching me up on all the latest trends.
It was a good first day. We worked well together. When it was time to leave, I packed up, but Jacob stayed behind to put in some extra hours.
I had to admit, Jacob was a handsome, devoted, and ambitious guy. Between him and Steven, Verna was a very lucky woman.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t quite remember what happened to Jacob. All I knew was that four and a half years into my marriage with Steven, he and Verna broke up. I remembered the timing so clearly because something major had happened between Steven and me around the same time.
I picked up my bag and left the office. Just as I reached the ground floor, my phone rang. I saw the caller ID, and my expression soured, but I answered anyway.
“What is it?”
A booming, highly displeased voice came through the line.
“Have you forgotten how to greet people? Where are your manners?”
From his tone alone, I could picture Martin’s red, angry face. I felt a surge of disgust.
The only reason Martin would be calling was for business—specifically, to get me to convince Steven to give him money.
Just as I expected, he continued in a gruff, commanding voice, “You and Mr. Lancaster will come home for dinner tonight. I have some business matters to discuss with him.”
His tone was not a request; it was an order.
A cold, mocking smile spread across my face.
In my past life, the same thing had happened. Back then, I didn’t refuse him. But I was always hesitant to ask Steven for so much money for my family, so I had timidly asked Steven if he would just come to dinner with me.
Steven had refused. I went home alone and was met with a torrent of verbal abuse from Martin. He called me useless, a waste of space who couldn’t even hold onto her own husband. He said raising a dog would have been a better investment.
Antonia and Janice stood by, adding fuel to the fire, making sure Martin’s anger and disgust toward me only deepened.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABEL
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: I Walked Away And He Lost His Mind (Zephyra and Steven)