Sitting up, I reach for my vibrating phone on my desk. I look down at the screen and see Madam Christine texting me again.
Shit.
I've refused all jobs this week, telling her I've been sick. I send her a quick message saying I'm on the mend and that I need to talk to her. I've been thinking a lot about escorting and decided I never want to go through feeling like this again.
I can’t work at Sanctuary Cove anymore.
Between the guilt of lying to both Natalie and Daniel, it's for the best. I know it is. I made a shit ton of money before the deal with James, which meant I didn't really need to keep doing it anyway.
I get up to use the bathroom, then I make my way to the kitchen to get a glass of water just as a furious Natalie storms in. The door flies open and hits the wall. She reaches for it and slams it shut.
"Aubrey!" she screams. Fuck, my ears.
"I'm right here," I say quietly behind her.
She jumps, holding her chest, and I’d have laughed if I wasn’t feeling so miserable.
She looks at me and her face scrunches up as she takes in my appearance. "You look like death."
"Love you too. What's up?"
Natalie stomps to the cabinet. She takes out a tall shot glass and pours tequila. A few drops spill onto the counter.
"My dad is a fucking psycho," she says, then throws the shot back. "I hate him."
Grimacing, I swallow hard. She offers me a shot as she's pouring another one, but I decline.
"What happened?" I ask, nervous.
"Remember how I thought it was strange that he stopped by? Now I know why he came by last week."
I frown, holding the glass of water to my chest. I had to tell her James stopped by in case Daniel let it slip.
"He wanted to tell me himself that he filed for divorce."
My brows shoot up and my jaw drops. Divorce? I didn't think he'd still go through with it.
"Exactly," she says at my expression. "And with some bullshit excuse too, which makes no sense because my mom said they were working on their marriage, and everything was going really well. She's devastated because she's been so happy. I know every marriage has issues—theirs certainly did—but he blindsided her with the papers. She says it's unexpected, and I kind of agree."
My eyes widen in utter shock. He already had her served? So maybe he had been coming to see me but really also Natalie too. I'm not sure what to think, and I try not to allow myself to feel anything, but my heart is fluttering crazy fast. Talk about mixed emotions. I didn’t know they were still working on their marriage. James never mentioned that, and while I feel even worse now, there's a part of me that's thrilled with the idea he'll be free. I knew James was serious about us, but I don't understand how he thought it would've ever worked. Paranoia seeps through me. Maybe if I'd answered one of his many calls this week I would know, but I hadn't, and now I'm even more perplexed.
I swallow back my tangled feelings and paste on sympathy. "I'm really sorry, Nat."
She shakes her head and takes another shot. She's staring at something behind me like she's lost in her thoughts.
"I don't understand… He was so calm when he told me, but my mom was crying nonstop. He's already moved out to some place on the east side, said things haven't been working out for a long time now and felt like it was finally decided they needed to move on separately." She looks my way, downright baffled. I hold my breath. "I don't understand. How can they both have such different views of their marriage? It doesn't make sense." Her nails tap the counter frantically. "Something is missing, I just don't know what yet."
"What was his reason?" I feel like if I don't ask something that it looks bad, but being the lying best friend that I am, I feel wrong for asking too.
She rolls her eyes. "He says their marriage hasn't been good for years and it's to the point that they hardly speak. He says they've had some type of agreement but it's between them. Whatever it was wasn't working out for him, he said. I asked my mom about it, but she won't tell me either. She's distraught, which makes me so angry at him to see her that upset. My mom is as gentle as a ladybug without an evil bone in her body." She shakes her head. "I can't get over the fact that he filed for divorce and moved out so quickly."
I can't either.
I'm hesitant. "Does it bother you that they're divorcing?"
"Yes and no. Of course it bothers me a little bit, but that's because I just feel terrible for my mom. She has a slight drinking problem, so I hope this doesn't set her over the edge. When I went to see her, she was drunk as fuck, but I didn't say anything because her husband of twenty-plus years left her, so I felt like she deserves a pass, you know?"
I nod. I can't not agree. I'd be the same way regardless if the marriage had already been lost for years.