Page 5 of Mr. Strategic

I should scream at him—rage—demand he leave the house. But I felt frozen, uncertain, caught in the hypnotic web of my husband’s confidence.

Then we had sex, and afterwards I lay there as he slept beside me, one lean strong arm on the curve of my hip.

My husband is cheating on me

He’d said nothing about stopping.

Given me no excuses or reasons.

Was I too boring, too quiet?

I knew Alix pretty well, might have even considered her a friend.

She was outgoing and bubbly, confident and assertive.

Everything I wasn’t.

But there was only one conclusion I could come to.

I was desperately, painfully in love with my husband.

But Michael didn’t love me.

Chapter Two

The next day, I got up and did it all again.

I only worked part-time at the library. I didn’t need to work at all, really. Michael’s salary was more than enough.

But I wanted to.

It felt good to have something for myself.

I was still moving in a frozen state when Michael called just as I was getting off work.

“Come to the hospital,” he said. “That stupid woman left her phone out and Dr. Ben-David found it. I need you there to reassure him that everything is aboveboard.”

Ah, right. Because Alix’s husband was the Chief of Surgery. AndMichaelwanted to be Chief of Surgery when Reuben retired.

And his adulterous ways put that at risk.

So I did what I had always done.

Obeyed him without question.

When I got to the hospital, I hurried to his office, where Dr. Ben-David paced the room, Alix perched uneasily on the edge of the desk. Her pretty face looked worried, while Reuben’s wasangry. He was a powerful older man with thick salt and pepper hair and beard.

Michael, however, was leaning against the door, looking bored and pissed. Not a blonde hair out of place.

“Ah, there you are,” he said, taking my hand and holding it in his much bigger one.

“How long has this been going on?” Reuben demanded.

“As you can see,” Michael said, waving his other lean tanned hand toward me. “I have no intention of divorcing my wife. There is no threat to your marriage here. We have an open relationship, and I was under the mistaken impression that you did, too.”

My heart pounded with shock.

Anopen marriage?