Filed to story: When His Wife Can’t Forgive
“Haven’t you sorted things out with your cousin yet? She still seems to harbor feelings for you.”
Cliff maintained an impassive facade. As the focal point of Laney’s affections, he knew all too well that her feelings lingered.
“And you seem to have a problem too,” Juliet added.
“You instantly wanted to check on Laney when you heard she wasn’t feeling well. I’ve never seen cousins so attentive to each other.”
Cliff’s lips pressed tightly together.
“If you’re tired, go to sleep. Leave me be.”
Juliet, feeling restless, supported her head with her hand and studied his profile.
“I’m curious. If things with your cousin aren’t resolved, why invite me here? Are you planning to commit to me?”
Cliff responded evenly, “It’s bound to happen. Does it matter if it’s sooner or later?”
This piqued Juliet’s interest. She leaned in closer.
“So, are you planning to sleep with me tonight?”
Cliff recoiled.
“In our family, we uphold the value of no premarital sex.”
Juliet laughed dismissively. It seemed absurd. If that were truly the case, why had Philip and Madison exited so hastily? Clearly, Cliff was the reluctant one.
Driven by curiosity, Juliet probed further.
“Have you ever been intimate with your cousin?”
Cliff turned to Juliet, his gaze sharp and forbidding.
“That’s none of your business.”
“So you have,” Juliet said, somewhat resigned. After having been with someone as gentle and tender as Laney, Juliet figured it would be difficult for Cliff to take an interest in someone else so quickly. Cliff didn’t bother to respond.
Juliet declared, “I won’t pry into your personal matters either.”
Finding the conversation increasingly tedious, Juliet yawned and rose to leave. She asked coyly, “By the way, should I sleep in your bedroom?”
“The guest room.”
“Oh, how dull.”
Meanwhile, Laney lay awake, restless. Her mind swirled with thoughts of Cliff. She resented him, yet the thought of him getting hurt pained her deeply. Her heart echoed his pain.
Laney despised how he continually occupied her thoughts.
Suddenly, the door opened.
Laney tensed. Even beneath the covers, she recognized the intruder. Only Cliff would enter without knocking.
Cliff approached the bed and gently lifted the blanket to look at her.
Laney curled up, shielding her face.
“Covering your head with the blanket might suffocate you,” Cliff said, gently lifting the cover without turning on the light, illuminated only by the glow of the night lamp.
Laney, uncertain of his intentions, resisted slightly.
“Let me check your neck,” Cliff murmured, his tone brooking no argument.
Feeling overpowered, Laney closed her eyes and submitted.
Cliff warmed some ointment in his hands before gently applying it to her neck.
“Does it still hurt?” he inquired.
Tears welled up in Laney’s eyes as she opened them to look at him. She wanted to plead with him to stop, but the sight of his bruised lip silenced her words.
“It doesn’t hurt. I’m not as fragile as you think.”
Cliff watched her for a moment before pulling his hand back.
“Do you want to apply some ointment for me?”
Laney’s eyelashes fluttered. She felt a surge of weakness.
“Haven’t you treated it?”
“No,” Cliff lied.
“It hurts when I touch it.”
He couldn’t fathom why he had lied. He knew once she softened, she would gravitate back toward him.
Laney sat up, her fingers dipping into the ointment, and tenderly applied it to his wound.
The cool, acrid scent of the ointment filled the air around them.
Cliff observed her reddened eyes and nose, thought of her crying in secret, and felt a pang in his heart.
“Laney, let’s revert to how things were,” he proposed, his voice deep and resonant.
“Back to three years ago, before you had feelings for me. Being involved with me invites numerous challenges and rumors. I can’t stand to see you suffer because of them.”
Laney paused.
“Is it really my suffering you can’t bear, or is it that you can’t bring yourself to love me?”
Cliff’s lips pressed tightly together, and he remained silent. Laney’s eyes filled with tears.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door.
“Cliff, are you in there?” Juliet’s voice called out.
Laney jolted back to reality, her heart sinking. The realization that Juliet was staying over that night struck her cold.
Cliff tucked away the ointment with practiced care. After a brief exchange with Laney, he strode to answer the knock at the door.
The door creaked open to reveal Juliet, now draped in Cliff’s black shirt – a sight that made Laney’s heart constrict.
Laney squeezed her eyes shut against the pain and burrowed under the covers.
Though Cliff’s jaw tightened at Juliet’s brazen choice of attire, he held his tongue in Laney’s presence and quietly pulled the door closed behind him.
Juliet chuckled.
“I knew you were in here. Did I interrupt something?”
“Why are you wearing my clothes?” Cliff’s words came out sharp as steel.
“Go change.”
“I don’t have anything else here. What did you expect after my shower? That I’d parade around naked?”
“I’ll have someone bring you proper clothes,” Cliff replied, reaching for his phone with swift determination.
“Cliff, if you want your cousin to give up her foolish dreams, you can’t keep wavering.”
Juliet caught his wrist.
“I knocked deliberately-let her see. Consider this shirt my souvenir, and it’ll vanish with tomorrow’s sun.”
Cliff’s face frosted over as he jerked away from her touch.
“My relationship with her isn’t your concern.”
Juliet’s lips curved into a knowing smile.
“Then keep dancing around the inevitable. You’re only poisoning your own peace.”
Cliff understood Laney like the back of his hand. For three years, she had orbited him like a devoted satellite, deaf to his coldest remarks. But beneath her persistence lay a gentle soul. His rare moments of vulnerability and quiet pleas struck her tender heart with devastating accuracy. The sight of his troubled expression was her undoing. And so, Laney finally stopped her silent rebellion. She forced herself back into the rhythm of normalcy, treating Cliff with carefully crafted indifference.
The upcoming performance proved a welcome distraction.
Laney threw herself into rehearsals, letting the burn of exhaustion and strain of muscles drown out thoughts of Cliff, that heartless man.
To Kira, however, this dedication reeked of challenge.
After the others had filtered out of rehearsal, Laney remained center stage, lost in a solitary dance. Her movements painted poetry under the harsh lights, each turn precise, each gesture flowing like water. Kira watched with venom in her veins before stalking forward to shatter Laney’s reverie.
Laney barely caught her balance, chest heaving as she met Kira’s gaze. Kira sneered, “Don’t you know I’m the lead in this performance? What are you trying to prove with all this extra practice? Planning to steal my spotlight?”
Laney diverted her gaze, reaching for a towel to dab at the perspiration on her brow.
“Even without my extra practice, you won’t shine any brighter than you do now.”
Kira lunged forward, fingers digging into Laney’s wrist.
“What did you just say? I dare you to repeat that!”