Illicit Affairs

Read All About It

Alice stirs awake as the bed dips beside her. She flutters an eye open, finding Hal next to her, she hums out an acknowledgment and he chuckles. "Go back to sleep, honey."

"Did you get everything worked out at the Register?" She mumbles, eyes still shut.

"Yeah," he answers, swallowing a lump in his throat. "Everything is fine."

"That's good, I'm glad." She rolls over and nuzzles into her pillows, falling back into a dream filled sleep. 

Hal watches her for a long moment, a pang of regret hits him as he admires her. It makes him ache that his perfect, beautiful, wife is an adulterer. And while part of him doesn't want to see her hurt, the other part of him thinks she needs to deal with the consequences of her actions.

So while he feels guilty about it, he can't help but think that maybe this will make their marriage stronger. After all? What kind of self respecting business would want an adulterous whore on there payroll? He'll finally have the wife he always dreamed of, one who will give him perfect blonde babies and have dinner ready on the table for him when he gets home. It's what his mom is like, it's what his sister is like, and it's what he wants Alice to be.

So instead of letting the guilt eat him up, he decides that this will be good for them, be a sort of wake up call. And so, he curls an arm around her waist and closes his eyes, anxiously awaiting the morning.

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Hal had still been asleep when she left, probably due to the fact that he got home so late from the Register. She can't bring herself to mind all that much though, she likes having the morning to herself, likes the peace and quiet where she can just do what she wants with no input or criticism from him. It's nice, and it's a rare occurrence.

So when she strolls into the firm early that morning, she's in a great mood, well rested and content, unaware that everything around her is about crumble.

All eyes fall on her the second she walks through the floor, and though it puzzles her she doesn't dwell on it too much.

As she walks further into the office she spots FP standing by her office, and gives him a smile. His face doesn't move an inch, completely stone faced and serious. Her eyebrows knit together. "Are you alright?" She asks him innocently.

He doesn't say a word just places his hand on the small of her back and guides her down the hall in a hurry, practically shoving the both of them
into his office and locking the door.

She watches as he frantically closes the blinds, effectively giving them some privacy from anyone else in the office. "Are you looking for a morning pick me up or something?" She jokes lightly.

FP doesn't crack a smile. "Have you read the paper?"

"What?" She raises an eyebrow at him.

"The newspaper, have you read it this morning?"

"No, why?"

"The pictures were published." He tells her, his voice calm and steady for her sake even though inside he's panicking.

"What?" The word comes out shaky.

"Thats not all... The Register was the one that published them."

"No way, Hal owns the Register, if he saw the pictures I would know about it." She insists. "You must have read the paper name wrong due to shock."

He sighs, gesturing to the computer. "Go look for yourself then."

Her heart rate picks up as she steps over to his desk. She logs onto the Register's website and sure enough there's the newest issue, and there's she and FP engaging in a heated, adulterous, lip-lock on the front page. "Oh my God."

"That's what I said when I saw it too."

"Fuck." She runs her shaky fingers through her hair, tugging gently at the blonde strands. "Fuck, fuck, fuck."

"Hal knows." FP answers, breaking the thick silence in the room.

Alice shakes her head immediately. "No, there's no way he knows, I would know if he did."

FP's voice softens, knowing she's on the verge of panicking. "Al-"

"He wouldn't post it! He's all about appearance, and this would absolutely destroy the perfect facade of a marriage he's created." She insists. "Why do you think I was so carefree when I was with you in Bali? I could just be myself, not the perfect Alice everyone expects me to be just because I married a Cooper. He wouldn't publish this, it would make us both look bad."

He walks over to the desk, kneeling down in front of her and taking her hands tight in his own. "Alice, I really hope you're right, but I have a feeling that he was the one who posted this."

"He wouldn't-"

"Alice, I know you want to believe that, and I want to believe it too, but do you honestly think that's the truth?" She stares at him, her beautiful blue eyes filled with tears that have yet to fall. "I think we've both seen how this kind of stuff plays out in the media, it's always the one who was cheated on that gets the sympathy. As much as it kills me to say, I think this was published to make you look bad and ruin your image."

Alice visibly tenses. "I need to go home. Will you cover for me?"

"Of course." He lets go of her hands as she stands up, smoothing out her skirt. "Do you want me to come with you? I can stay outside, just in case he reacts badly."

She offers him a small smile. "I think that would cause more harm than good, but thank you." She's about to walk out of the office but stops and turns back around.

She takes his face in her hands as soon as she's close to him. "No matter what happens, even if my entire reputation is destroyed, I don't regret anything that happened between us." She tells him, the tone of her voice purely seriousness, not a hint of shakiness. "Meeting you was the best thing that has ever happened to me."

He smiles at her, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "I wouldn't trade meeting you for anything, you've changed my life." He presses a soft kiss to her lips, lingering for just a moment before resting his forehead against hers. "Call me if you need anything, okay?"

"I will." She can sense he's nervous about her leaving and she gives him an assuring smile. "I'll be okay, I can handle him." He nods, loosening his vice-like grip on her waist. She kisses him once more before slipping out of his office, keeping her head down as she passes by everyone's judging stares.

FP watches her go, a pit in his stomach and three little words balancing on the tip of his tongue.