Forsaking All Others Read online

  He was angry. He didn’t approve.

  She stood frozen; a blank look hid the shock, and that ran up her arm.

  He didn’t release until she completely sat back down, not wanting to cause a scene. Julianna fought to keep her composure as the waiter brought their orders. Devon’s eyes, which were shooting daggers of disapproval and disdain, only left hers at that moment. He thanked the waiter with a winning smile and shoveled food into his mouth, unfazed by their conversation, and the fact he had admitted to cheating on her.

  His wife.

  Finally, he looked up and noticed she’d barely touched her food.

  “Honey?”

  Gone was the appetite she’d had only moments before. She stared at her full plate.

  Devon reached out and took her hand in his, briefly, before going back to his meal. She raised her head slowly to look into the face of betrayal.

  “Julianna, I don’t want this to affect our marriage. We’re a good pair. It’s only sex.”

  The sheer lack of remorse for what he’d done almost made Julianna want to take her plate and break it over her his head.

  Only sex?

  Had she gone out and cheated on him, would he have accepted it as he expected her to? This was a man who always tried to preach about how sacred marriage was. Now, he was admitting he’d slept with another woman. Possibly others. She wouldn’t put it past the arrogant bastard.

  Her hands shook from anger. She wrung her hands to steady herself. She raised a forkful of food into her mouth for lack of anything else to do.

  When she was finished with her meal—eaten out of pure anger and nothing else—she sat there, numb, as they waited for the bill.

  Devon signed the receipt, then spoke again. “Oh, I forgot to tell you. My parents are having dinner at their place tonight. Make sure you’re there and you dress nicely. Please, please, keep this little separation issue to yourself? We’ll talk more at home.” He glanced down at his watch. “I have to get to work. Bye.”

  He placed a quick peck on her cheek before turning and walking away, nearly bowling over other diners in his haste.

  Julianna touched the spot on her cheek where Devon had kissed her, staring at his retreating form as he made his way down the street. He’d admitted to cheating on her but had shown no sign of remorse. He had even tried to justify it.

  Even worse, he expects me to accept it.

  She scoffed. She didn’t have to be an expert on marriage to know none of this was right. This was disrespect in the purest form.

  This marriage won’t work. This marriage… won’t work.

  She walked out into the day, her mouth set in a grim line at the realization. He didn’t believe there was something wrong with their marriage, and that was what had hurt the worst.

  They were “a good pair.” Not once had he talked about love. Not once did he ask her how she was doing.

  It was time for her to stop making excuses and see her marriage for what it was—a failure.

  She jerked open her car door and sat inside. Oh, she’d show up to this family dinner. She wasn’t finished with her husband just yet.

  Julianna pasted a smile on her face. Devon wrapped his arms around her and planted a kiss on her neck. He was pulling out all the stops tonight. He hadn’t let her out of his sight for more than a few minutes.

  She disentangled herself from his grasp and walked away to the kitchen to grab a drink. Victoria was also in the kitchen when she approached. She half-heartedly made conversation with her sister-in-law, trying to ignore the twisting in her gut as she stared at Victoria’s growing belly.

  I thought this would have been me by now. Happily married, with child. Now, I don’t even have a marriage.

  She was halfway through her punch, mulling over her thoughts, when she heard excited voices coming from the living room. Curious, she walked out to see Devon embrace a tall woman wearing a dress that barely covered large breasts, a trim waist, and a fat ass. She was beautiful, with caramel skin and long, silky hair. Attention piqued, Julianna strained to hear the introductions Devon was giving.

  “Mom, I want you to meet Michelle Jean-Pierre. We’ve been doing business together, and it wouldn’t be fitting to celebrate my work without her being here.”

  He leaned in to embrace the woman, and all the color left Julianna’s face. Wasn’t Michelle the name of the woman he’d admitted to sleeping with earlier that day?

  She scrutinized the woman as if she could figure out her question just by looking at her. Her fingers gripped the cold glass in her hand so tightly, she feared it would break. Just as she turned to walk away, the pair approached her.

  “Julianna?” Devon called. “This is Michelle, a business associate. She’s the one I told you about.”

  Julianna gritted her teeth and forced herself to focus on the woman in front of her. The level of disrespect was almost laughable. The two of them deserved each other, approaching her as if they had done nothing wrong.

  “Hi.” Julianna’s voice was tense and clipped. She purposefully took another sip of her drink, ignoring the woman’s outstretched hand. She locked eyes with Michelle’s.

  “I’m Devon’s wife,” she said. “I doubt he’s told you much about me. Or maybe he has. I don’t know what he’s been up to lately.”

  She finished with an icy stare at them both. Michelle, visibly uncomfortable, gave a nervous laugh. She self-consciously readjusted her dress. Devon’s eyes narrowed, but he remained silent.

  “Of course, I know about you, Julianna. Everyone at the office keeps telling me all about Devon’s wonderful wife. It’s a pleasure.”

  She beamed. Julianna’s gut twisted in disgust. Was this woman really that stupid to believe she didn’t know? A devilish thought came to her mind as she watched the woman in front of her.

  “Speaking of which, was having sex with my husband purely business, or was it also ‘a pleasure’?”

  With a glint in her eye, Julianna spun on her heels and turned to walk out onto the patio, not waiting for a response. She knew her question had taken Michelle by surprise when she heard the woman gasp behind her.

  Good.

  Just as she stepped out onto the patio, Devon called out to her. “Julianna, what the hell was that?” He scanned the area around them to make sure they were alone. They were, save for a couple of his cousins who had strayed outside onto the deck for some fresh air. “I thought you were over that.”

  Julianna folded her arms, cocked her head to the side, and squinted her eyes.

  He had to be joking.

  “You told me about it today, and now she’s here.”

  Devon sighed and raked his hand over his immaculately cropped hair.

  “Because I explained it to you. It’s not like I’m in love with her or anything. It’s just business, Julianna.”

  “Business. Just like our marriage.”

  She was about to say more when Devon’s mother came out onto the deck. “Hey, you two lovebirds. Dinner’s ready. We’re just waiting on you.” She smiled at the pair before returning inside.

  Julianna followed, ignoring Devon. All she had to do was make it through dinner. Then, she would make up an excuse and leave.

  Appeased, she took her place at the dinner table, noting the way Michelle avoided her eyes. Good. At least she wouldn’t be the only one who was miserable.

  She was busy pushing her food around on her plate when Devon’s parents suddenly stood up for a toast. “To Devon, our son. Your qualities as an honorable, admirable man, and your successes have made us the happiest parents alive.”

  “Not to mention,” his mother added, with tears in her eyes, “you’ve found a love as perfect as you are. It makes me so happy to see two people so in love.”

  The table cheered their agreement, and Julianna felt something inside her snap. Devon really had all these people fooled. Even worse, she’d played a part in aiding his lie. Even after everything he’d told her earlier that day, she was still here, playing the p
art of the doting wife. She’d always been willing to make everything look as if things were perfect, but the truth was, she was miserable. She’d always been.

  This realization brought a single word to her lips.

  “No.”

  Her voice, although shaky, was loud and clear.

  Mrs. Winton’s face wrinkled in confusion. “No, what, sweetie?”

  Julianna cleared her throat and dragged her hand away from Devon, who’d reached for her. “I can’t let you all continue to believe Devon and I have the perfect marriage.”

  “Julianna—”

  She ignored Devon’s voice, laced with barely concealed rage and continued. “He’s cruel, he’s mean. For the last few months, I’ve watched our marriage deteriorate to almost nothing. He actively avoids me, and I highly doubt he loves me.”

  A collective gasp went around the table. All eyes fell on the pair sitting next to each other at the dining room table. Julianna didn’t need to turn to face Devon to know he was angry. His rage was palpable, almost suffocating her as he now turned to glare at her.

  “What?!” Devon’s brothers’ voices rang out in unison as they stared at their brother in alarm.

  Mrs. Winton stood up in shock and placed a hand on her chest in disbelief. “Julianna, I—”

  Julianna got up from the table on unsteady feet, grabbed her purse, and continued. Devon continued to glare at her, his eyes shooting daggers at her to shut her mouth. His jaw clenched and his nose flared. Now she’d started, she couldn’t seem to stop. She didn’t want to.

  “Today,” Julianna laughed, almost giddy with disbelief, “your perfect son told me he cheated on me with that woman over there.” She pointed at Michelle. Now all eyes were on Michelle, who sat squirming in her chair. She visibly reddened under their scrutiny but remained silent.

  Julianna cut her eyes at her and continued.

  “He said it was just business.” Tears glittered in her eyes as she finally turned to face her husband. “He expected me to accept it. And I was still dumb enough to show up here to support our farce of a marriage.”

  Mr. Winton stood, a pained expression on his face. Devon sat there, glowering at her, jaw twitching in anger.

  “Julianna, where is this coming from?” Mr. Winton asked, his gaze alternating between her face and his son’s.

  Devon reached out for her again, his movements more forceful but she shook her head.

  “It’s the truth. This has been my reality, and I am tired of living it. I’m tired of hurting.” She turned to his parents, “I’m so sorry to do this here, but I couldn’t take it anymore. I can’t keep breaking my heart and hoping my husband will change or even care. She choked back another sob that caused a harsh sound to escape her throat. Her voice shook, but she continued. “I now know he cares more about his image than he does me.”

  There was a hushed silence around the room as Julianna left into the night.

  Julianna pulled up to her sister’s house and sprang out of the car. To finally unmask what her reality had been like with Devon felt exhilarating. It was as if someone had raised a massive weight off her shoulders, always behind the façade of being fine and praying for her marriage to improve.

  Right as she was about to walk up the steps, the sound of a car squealing to a stop filled her ears. She didn’t have to turn to know it was Devon. Her blood turned to ice in her veins.

  He raced up the driveway toward her, his face set into a deep scowl. “What the hell were you trying to prove?” he demanded. “Now my family thinks I’m some sort of demon. I don’t know what your problem is, but I damn sure didn’t deserve that!”

  Julianna’s anger plumed. “You don’t know? You don’t know?! You treat me like shit, and you cheat on me, but you don’t know?”

  He advanced on her. She shoved him off. She wasn’t going to do this with him. Not now. Not after he had ignored all her other attempts at discussing their problems.

  “What more do you want from me, Julianna? I gave you everything—a nice house, nice things. What more could you want?”

  Her rage deepened as she stared at the man in front of her.

  Is it even possible for him to even see past himself?

  He made another advance, taking hold of her arm. She attempted to tug her arm free, but he tightened his grasp, jerking her backward towards him. Angry, she pushed at him, allowing, even just this once, for her anger to speak for her. For him to hear what was in her heart, raw and unfiltered.

  “How about a husband who loves me?! How about a husband who doesn’t have to be drunk to touch me? Who doesn’t go around fucking other women and then tries to justify it? Oh, I know, how about a husband who acts like being around me isn’t the worst thing in the world? I don’t care about what you can do for me financially! I never have. I loved YOU.”

  She pulled her arm free and took a moment to glare at him before starting for the house, needing to distance herself from him.

  Devon scoffed and advanced on her once again. Julianna hastily made her way up the front steps in an attempt to get away from him.

  The front door suddenly swung open, Jason came charging outside. His dark brown eyes were narrowed into slits, menacing, focused, accentuating his deep brown skin. He stepped in front of Julianna and ushered her to the door behind him. He stared down into Devon’s eyes.

  “Leave. Now.”

  Devon rolled his eyes and tried to reach around for Julianna’s hand. “I’m having a conversation with my wife. Let’s go, Julianna.”

  Julianna shook her head.

  “I said, let’s go.” The muscle in Devon’s jaw pulsed as he lunged after Julianna.

  Before she could stop him, Jason shoved Devon so hard he skidded back into the dirt.

  “Go inside.” Jason nudged Julianna towards the house and turned back to face Devon. “She’s not going anywhere with you,” Jason said. “Leave her alone and go home.”

  Devon, unwilling to be defeated so easily, threw a punch that Jason easily dodged. The momentum of his swing made him lose his balance.

  “That’s my wife! You can’t tell me what to do with my wife!” he yelled, bringing himself back up to his feet.

  He threw punches, wild and desperate. Jason, after trying to keep his composure, finally gave up and punched him full in the face. Hard.

  Devon yelped and crumpled to the floor, grabbing his face as he fell.

  “I said, leave my property. Leave Julianna alone. If you come back here, you’ll be in for much worse.”

  A chill ran down Julianna’s spine at Jason’s menacing tone, but she was grateful to have Jason there. Devon would have become physical with her if she had been alone. She was sure.

  She stared at the stranger in front of her as he picked himself up from the floor, his eyes boring into hers There was no remnant of the man she had married. Another piece of her heart crumbled. The man she’d thought Devon to be was not at all the man he was now.

  She shuffled into the house, hugging her arm against her shaking body. She felt like a fool for being the last person to realize what her marriage was. Until that afternoon, a small part of her had been foolish enough to hope Devon would have changed or would have been willing to change. That they could work on their marriage. However, after tonight, she knew all was lost.

  She maneuvered her way into the kitchen, sat down at the table and cried. Silent tears ran down her face. How had her life turned into this? Had she really been that blind for so long? Pain shot through her arm where Devon had grabbed her. It was swelling. She needed to get ice on it, quick.

  Julianna struggled to see through her tears and maneuver around the kitchen with one arm, in search of ice. Her unsteady hand dropped the ice tray, sending ice cubes skating across the kitchen floor. She cursed viciously before she bent to pick up the already-melting cubes. She felt a hand on her shoulder and, without looking, she knew it was her sister.

  “Julianna, I heard the shouting. What happened?” Danicah quickly peeked outside throu
gh the blinds, her hands full of folded sheets. Her body relaxed when she spotted Jason walking up the front steps. “Did Devon hurt you?”

  Julianna slumped back into the chair, her ice forgotten. “I told them everything.” Her voice was low and hollow as she stared off into space.

  “Told who?” Danicah sat beside her sister.

  Jason appeared from outside and leaned against the kitchen wall.

  “His family,” Julianna said. “You were right, Danni. He cheated on me with that woman. He openly admitted it and even invited her to dinner with his family. Everyone was praising our beautiful marriage, a lie I helped to create, and I couldn’t take it. I couldn’t take it.”

  Julianna erupted into sobs that racked her entire body. She’d worked so hard and spent so much time trying to protect her marriage, only for it to come apart like this. She’d never felt so stupid.

  “Hey, it’s okay.” Danicah embraced Julianna and smoothed her hair. “You wanted things to work out.”

  Julianna’s sobs became louder as she tried to speak. “I-I wanted to be as happy as you and Jason. I wanted someone to love me. I thought Devon was the one. I prayed he was the one. But there’s no amount of praying that can make someone love you.”

  Danicah’s eyes misted. She hated seeing Julianna cry. She hadn’t known Julianna had wanted a marriage that badly until this point. Never knew her sister felt unloved. It answered some of her questions about Devon. She’d never liked him and had always wondered why her sister hadn’t seen him for who he truly was. Maybe she had. Maybe Julianna had just been hoping things would improve.

  She locked eyes with her Jason, whose face was filled with worry and tension.

  Danica wiped her eyes and tilted Julianna’s chin up. “But you have someone who loves you. You have people who love you. Jason and I do.” She tried to get Julianna to smile but realized it would not happen when Julianna began to cry again.