Sex with the Ex

Where were you?

I threw open the door and chucked her shoes at them.

"Don't forget these," I told her before slamming the door and storming up the stairs.

What did she mean? What was it I needed to know that he wasn't going to tell me?

I was furious as I marched into my bathroom, tossed my robe to the floor and immediately sank myself into the white porcelain claw-foot tub, turning the faucet back on to warm it up. However, as the bubbles surrounded me and the glorious lavender-vanilla aroma filled my senses, it began to calm my nerves. I slowly closed my eyes and settled deeper into the tub, the soapy water covering me all the way to my chin.

"Beth?" Came Sam's voice on the other side of the door as he knocked.

My eyes shot open and I glared at the door as if I could melt holes into it with my stare. I ignored him, closing my eyes again and tried to focus on my bath.

"I'm sorry I brought her home, Beth. That was wrong of me," he said, his voice filled with regret.

However, I continued to ignore him.

"Beth, please. Talk to me."

His plea enraged me further. I flipped on the radio beside me, cranking it up as loud as it would go. I could hear him yelling through the door, but it was just a jumble of nonsense that I didn't understand.

Then, the door popped open and he snatched the radio from the shelf, turning it off and setting it on the bathroom sink. "Quit ignoring me. We need to talk about this."

I narrowed my eyes, shooting daggers at him. "Ok. You first. How about you start with telling me who the fuck she is and why she was in my house?"

I was trying to keep my anger in check, but it was not working. All I could think about was what I had heard them say to each other outside our house.

Sam sighed. "Her name is Ellie and she was here because I invited her here...actually, because I brought her here."

I rolled my eyes. "You expect me to believe that bullshit? Why were you even with her in the first place?"

He leaned against the counter as he looked at me, crossing his arms. "I was with her because you made it very clear that you didn't wanna be with me."

My expression softened for a moment at his words. "I'm sorry for what I said. I didn't mean it."

"Yes, you did."

I paused for a second, wanting to disagree, but the truth was, he was right.

"Ok. So, I didn't mean to say those things to you. It's wrong of me to put all of the blame on you. If I hadn't..."

"No," he shook his head, interrupting me. "You're right. It is all my fault."

His admission of guilt stabbed at my heart. "Sam..."

"No, Beth. If I had just let you drive or called an Uber, our baby would be here right now and we wouldn't be divorced, stuck in this house of painful memories."

Tears stung my eyes as I envisioned his thoughts. "Sam...we wouldn't have left the party in such a rush if it wasn't for what happened between Will and I. I regret that moment every day."

Sam scoffed. "Yet, you're working for him."

"It's not like that, Sam. He's my boss. That's all. There's nothing going on between us," I defended.

I could tell Sam was trying to reign in the fury that was bubbling up at the surface. "Then, why would you want to work for him?"

I shrugged my shoulder. "Because he offered me a great job and I couldn't turn it down."