Page 8 of Cain

“I’m sorry.”

“Eh, long time ago.”

“A long time? You’re not that old.”

“Nah, but I married straight out of high school.”

“Is it rude to ask what happened?”

“I dunno. Maybe. But I don’t mind the question. I think it was a combination of things. We were too young for that shit. We grew up and outward instead of in. Then, on top of all of that, I let work get in the way. But by then, I think I was using work to distract me from the inevitable.”

I paused, thinking about all those nights that I would sit in my squad car—and, later,—in the SWAT HQ—just hoping for some action so I wouldn’t have to go back home, wouldn’t have to have another uncomfortable conversation, wouldn’t have to take my fair share of responsibility for how far off track our marriage had careened.

“That sounds hard. Did you file?”

A humorless laugh escaped me. “No. I never had the balls. Was never ready to admit that we’d failed. My wife at the time, she filed.”

“Was it amicable?”

“Yeah. I mean, neither of us were exactly happy about the whole situation, but we both knew it had been over for a long time. She was married again just over a year later. To a former team member of mine.”

“Team member? Sports?”

“Nah. No. SWAT. I worked SWAT for a few years.”

“Hm,” she said, tracing a finger around the top of her can.

“You can say it.”

“It didn’t feel suspicious about how quickly she remarried?”

“Sure did,” I agreed. “But by then, the ink was well and dry, so what point was there to be upset about it?”

“Even if she was having an affair?”

“Even if. It was over.” And by then, I was about to blow up my own life by turning in my SWAT crew for corruption. In the grand scheme of things, the fallout from that was far worse than any anger or resentment I could have felt if I found out my wife and buddy had been fucking around behind my back.

“That is very mature of you.”

“Is that what happened here? Was that idiot fucking around on you?”

She took a deep breath and shook her head.

“Not that I know of.”

“Just the other shit then.”

Her gaze didn’t meet mine when she agreed, “Just the other shit.”

It was right then that the sound of voices had her stiffening.

“It’s alright. Just the guys coming back from getting some food.”

I looked past her, seeing the OG club members—Reign, Wolf, Duke, and Repo—making their way in.

All their gazes went to Georgie’s back, their brows and lips going up.

“Guys,” I greeted them. “This is Georgie. She’s just waiting for her soon-to-be-ex-husband to pull away across the street.”