The Chauffeur [Complete]

Chapter 18

"Three thousand dollars!?" Sam yelled, slamming his fist down on the dining room table. Guess he got a call from our bank while he was at work. "You spent three thousand dollars of my fucking money!"

I set my wine glass down and looked at him. "You lied to me. I know you didn't have a business meeting with the Hartford's. So tell me, where were you really?"

"That's not any of your fucking business," he growled.

So he admits it.

I took another sip of my wine. I might as well get straight to the point. "Are you cheating on me?"

He froze, angry and taken aback. "What?"

"You heard me."

He huffed a laugh. "I'm not doing this with you."

He started to walk away, so I said, "I checked our bank accounts. Who did you send four and a half grand to?"

That stopped him in his tracks. He whipped around, a vein bugling out the side of his head. "What I do with my money isn't your damn business, Celeste. And while we're on the subject, you're going to pay me back every fucking cent you spent on your little shopping spree."

I laughed. "The hell I will."

"We'll see about that," he bit back before storming out of the dining room. 

He must have thrown something, because I heard something shatter. It was probably a vase. And if it was, I hope it was that ugly ass pink vase his parents gifted us at our wedding. I've always hated it, but never had the balls to say something about it. After all, they were the ones who paid for our wedding.

It's going to be a damn shame when I tell them I'm divorcing their son's cheating ass. While I didn't have proof he actually cheated, I had a feeling. And ninety-nine percent of the time, that feeling turned out to be right.

"Mommy?"

I internally curse upon hearing my daughter's voice. Our arguing must have woken her up. And if not our arguing then that broken vase sure as hell did. She's standing near the entrance of the kitchen, her blue eyes brimming with tears.

She definitely heard us.

Mierda(Shit).

"Come here, bunny." She rushes into my arms. I sigh, holding her close to my body. "I'm sorry, Ev. You weren't supposed to hear that."

"Are you and daddy going to get a divorce?" She asks.

"What? How do you know what a divorce is?"

"Hannah," she murmurs.

I scoff. Of course. That little girl knows too damn much.  I pull Everly onto my lap. "Listen, bunny. I know you don't want to hear this, but daddy and I may have to be apart for a little while."

"Me too?"

I shake my head. "You're going to see daddy as many times as you want."

As fucked up as Sam and I's relationship has gotten, I would never tear him away from his daughter. He loves her more than anything in the world. And just because I'm upset doesn't mean I'm going to use our daughter to spite my husband.

"Does that mean you are getting a divorce?"

"Maybe," I answered honestly. 

Cheating wasn't exactly a deal breaker for me. But constantly being disrespected and treated less than was. I've grown sick and tired of it. I don't feel beautiful when I am with Sam. And honestly, the spark we once had is probably never going to come back.

I don't know what happened to us. We used to be so in love. And now, it feels like we're only together because of Everly, and because we've been together so long we don't really know how to be apart from each other.

I'm tired of feeling unloved. I deserve love just like everybody else. I don't have to put up with this shit. Of course, if my suspicions are correct and Sam is cheating on me, I'm going to be hurt. But eventually, I'll move on. I think.

"Mommy?"

"Hm?"

"I'll be okay if you and daddy break up."

"Really?"

She nodded. "Daddy doesn't make you happy anymore. You're always sad."

I wanted to cry. I couldn't believe my daughter even paid that much attention. Now I feel like a shitty parent for not making sure me and Sam's problems didn't corrupt our daughter.

I hugged her even closer to my chest, feeling the softness of her hair and the comforting feeling of her warm body against mine. "Te quiero mucho conejita(I love you so much, bunny)."

"Yo tambien te amo mami(I love you, too, mommy)." She cupped my face with her small hands and leaned in to rub our noses together in the form of an Eskimo kiss.

Everly is too smart for her own good. No child should be okay with their parents splitting up. I didn't want her having to go back and forth between homes and have two Christmases instead of one. So I made a vow that divorced or not, I will find a way to work things out with Sam. It's the least we can do for our little girl.

****

"That bastard!" Andi exclaimed, after I'd told her what happened last night.

She paced the floor of her living room, more upset about the situation than I was. I didn't have any more anger or fight left in me. I was done trying to make this work. Sam has put no effort into making our marriage work, so why should I?

"Please tell me you are going to divorce his ass?"

"Not until I have proof that he's cheating."

Andi stopped pacing, her hands on her hips. "You act like there aren't a million reasons why you need to walk away from this marriage. If you don't remember, I will gladly name them off." She held up her hand, flipping a finger down after each reason. "First, he treats you like shit. Second, he refuses to support your dreams and expects you to be a housewife for the rest of your fucking life. Three, he fucks like a grandpa. Four, he-"

"Okay, okay, I get it." I didn't want to hear anymore.

Andi sighed. "I want what's best for you, Celeste. Always have. Sam's not the guy you met in high school. He's changed. And not in a good way."

"Maybe if I could just talk to him, then-"

"You've tried talking to him, boo. He's not listening."

I released a heavy sigh. I was at a crossroads. My grandparents always taught me to fight for your marriage, and not to leave at the first sign of trouble. But it's been a year of this. And quite frankly, I'm not even sure Sam loves me anymore. I know what being loved by him feels like and it doesn't feel anything like this.

Andi sat down on the couch, angling her body, so she was looking at me. She placed her hand on my knee. "Look, I love you, C. And this is your decision. So I will support you in whatever you decide. Just know that."

I smiled. "Thank you."

Her lips pull into a grin. "And... I will wholeheartedly support you should you decide to fuck that hot ass Chauffeur of yours."

My cheeks burned bright red. "Andi!"

She shrugged. "I'm just saying. Harvey created quite the specimen. I wouldn't be opposed if you wanted to give Rade a little test drive."

"Oh my- Dios(God)!" I grabbed one of the throw pillows on the couch and chucked it at her. "I'm not doing anything with my Chauffeur."

"Not yet," Andi said, her grin widening. "But you will. And when you do, I better be the first to know."