18

Chapter 16- Risk and Benefit

She now felt changed as she had always expected to feel. Waking up with only sheets keeping her body warm, she pulled herself free and basked in the smell of the man she desired. The events of the night before played in her head for weeks to come, making her blush each time the thought occurred. When she was finally ready to continue on, she collected a new pair of clothes as her gaze fell to the dress that sat on the floor, beside her shoes. Her sight then flashed to the shamelessly discarded condom rapper that sat teasingly near the bed. Picking it up between her fingers, she arched her brow before tossing it in the waste basket beside her nightstand.

Applying her final layer of perfume, she moved across the lawn and into the kitchen where Rochelle was writing a letter very quickly.

"Good morning Rochelle..." Quinn spoke, not wanting to spook her employer.

"Oh, good morning." As she looked up for a split second, her complexion appeared tired. Her usual flawless skin was beginning to look aging and her fingers were trembling as she wrote. Even her clothes seemed darker; normally wearing something tight fitting and expensive, she wore a tee-shirt underneath a winter coat and a pair of black jeans that looked too young for her to wear.

"I am going to be gone for about two weeks. Call Sera if you need anything made."

"Is everything alright, Rochelle?"

She stopped at the door before turning.

"I do not believe anyone has asked me that in quite some time, thank you." As she spoke in detail, there was a deep note of obvious sadness in her voice; as if she had been crying for an extended period of time. "I do not wish to make things difficult by explaining them, so I'll sum it up." She took a deep breath. "I believe my husband is having an affair." Quinn froze, every muscle became like ice-painful, cold ice.

"Why would you think that? It appears that Hudson adores you..."

"Dear Quinn...not everything is as it seems..."

"Can I ask what makes you think?"

"He did not come to bed-"

"Miss Rochelle...it's because he was in the gym."

"What? I didn't hear him."

"I saw him on the floor working on some papers...He commented in passing how his office was becoming too cluttered and he goes there to get away from everything and get more sun-"

"But it was night..."

"Yes, so I suppose it was just for the space this time. Perhaps to not wake the kids..."

"But other things have changed dear, he makes excuses to not be around me. I waited up for him all night on his birthday, and he never entered the room. He used to hold-" She ceased her words, finding each detail was making her more and more vulnerable. "Forgive me, it is my burden, not yours. I do hope this does not effect your being here, the kids adore you."

"Of course not." In her mind, she was relieved that Rochelle was letting go of her estranged husband and allowing him to move on. She was also glad that Rochelle did not expect her.

Allowing Rochelle to leave, she scanned the contents of the letter that was just written and saw how it was an angry letter full of emotion. The main points had been that she was tired of everything being one-sided and how he did not support her career. At the bottom, she explained how she would be meeting with a divorce lawyer this week and would serve him papers within the month.

Reading it made her feel as though she had accomplished something, but then she thought of how she felt when her parents had divorced. The guilt that had fallen on her, and the hate of everyone who was involved. She was now worried of the children, more than ever. But all of this fell away when she felt his warm embrace wrap around her.