Page 129 of Checkmate
They had only been married for a year. Now was not the time to get paranoid when she had given him no reason to. Sophie promised herself to him and made vows to him. She wasn’t the type of woman to break those promises.
As though she could tell he was thinking about her, Sophie took his hand, lacing their fingers. She smiled up at him and his heart soared.
He trusted her.
He had no reason not to.
PRESENT DAY
If someone had told Marcus he’d be sitting in a coffee shop, waiting to meet the man he had swapped wives with, he’d have laughed at their faces.
As it happened, he still found the entire situation quite amusing.
Erica had been blowing up his phone all morning. She was trying to give him as many pointers as she could for dealing with Alex. While he appreciated her concern, he was ready to face the man himself. He found it surprising Alex had agreed to this meeting at all, though Marcus suspected it was just for the chance to pay him back for punching him in the face. Whatever his reasons, it seemed he stayed true to his word, entering the coffee shop a short while later.
Hostility rolled off him as he made his way over to Marcus’ table, pulling out a chair and taking a seat without exchanging pleasantries. “Can we make this quick? I’m on a meter.”
“It will take as long as it takes,” Marcus said cooly. “Since I’m here on Erica’s behalf, I’ll take my time.”
“Why are you here, anyway?” Alex asked, curling his lip. “Who is Erica to you?”
“That’s none of your concern.” Taking a sip of his coffee, he regarded Alex over the rim of his mug. He’d lost weight since the last time they’d seen one another, and there were dark circles under his eyes that weren’t there before. With wrinkled clothes and hair longer and unkempt, he wasn’t as put together as he used to be.
Something or someone was clearly causing Alex a lot of stress, and in Marcus’ opinion, it couldn’t have happened to a nicer bloke.
“That’s a bullshit answer,” Alex spat. “Are you fucking my wife?”
“Just returning the favour,” Marcus replied without missing a beat. He was going to pay for that, but the look on Alex’s face made it absolutely worth it.
“You know, I always thought you were a spineless twat,” Alex said, his voice low as he leaned across the table. “From the moment I first shook your hand at the company’s anniversary party.”
“Is that so?”
“Do you know how fucking thrilling it was to shake your hand, look you in the eye, and still smell your wife’s pussy on my fingers?” Alex smirked at him, his eyes flashing. “There you were making small talk, sucking up to your wife’s boss and all the while she was practically eye fucking me standing right next to you.”
“Well, you live and learn, Alex. Sophie is no longer my concern.”
“Don’t do that,” Alex laughed. “Don’t pretend that it doesn’t drive you fucking crazy knowing you lost her.”
“No pretending,” Marcus said, shifting in his seat and clearing his throat. “Believe it or not, I’m over Sophie. I wish her well, but I want nothing to do with her.”
Alex looked dumbfounded. A fact that Marcus took great pleasure in. He had spoken without thinking, but once the words left his mouth, it surprised him how honest they were. He was over Sophie and had been for some time.
Perhaps it was because of the nature of their divorce - Marcus had never been the type to forgive infidelity. But the more accurate reason was simply Erica.
If only he could summon the courage to have the talk with her. It had been a couple of weeks since they slept together, and they had said nothing. It was so difficult navigating their day-to-day when her being nearby was testing the limits of his patience. He wanted to kiss her so badly.
To touch her.
But until she made it clear she felt the same way, he wasn’t going to be the one to make a move. His fragile heart couldn’t take it.
“You’re lying,” Alex said, grabbing Marcus’ attention once again. “How can you be over her?”
“Well, cheating whores aren’t really my thing.” Marcus shrugged, signalling the waitress for another coffee. “I’m sure she’s much happier with you.”
“Of course she is,” Alex scoffed. “I can give her things you couldn’t even dream of. Unlike you, I am a real man.”
“Lovely. Well, believe it or not, I didn’t come here to have a pissing competition with you, Alex. So, if we could move on.”
