Chloe was still standing at the front door.
Her hand rested on the handle.
Brad hadn't moved.
I looked from one to the other.
"What else did he ask you to arrange?"
Chloe swallowed.
"I don't think I should explain it without showing you something."
I folded my arms.
"Then show me."
She looked toward Brad.
He shook his head slightly.
That small movement told me more than he probably intended.
"Brad, don't."
He looked at her.
"Chloe, we've discussed this."
"Yes. And you still haven't told her."
I felt my anger returning.
"Can somebody please stop discussing my life as though I'm not sitting here?"
Chloe lowered her handbag onto the small table.
She opened it and removed a thin folder.
It was the kind of folder people used for documents they didn't want to lose.
She placed it beside the pharmacy bag.
I recognized the office name printed across the top.
It was the same organization listed on the appointment paperwork.
"What's inside?"
Chloe looked at me.
"Copies of the arrangements Brad asked me to help with."
I opened the folder.
There were several pages.
Some contained appointment details.
Others were confirmation sheets.
I turned one page.
Then another.
Nothing immediately made sense.
Until I noticed a section with Brad's name.
I looked up.
"Why is your name here?"
Brad sat down.
"Because I made the arrangements."
I turned another page.
There was a note about a consultation.
Another referred to a financial estimate.
And another mentioned a follow-up meeting.
I looked at him.
"Did you plan to pay for all this?"
"Yes."
"With what money?"
He hesitated.
"From our savings."
I put the folder down.
"Our savings?"
He nodded.
I felt my stomach tighten.
"How much?"
"It's not what you think."
I laughed.
"That's becoming your favorite sentence."
Brad rubbed his forehead.
"I hadn't paid anything substantial. I was only getting information."
"Then why didn't you tell me?"
He looked at the papers.
"Because I wanted to know what was possible before discussing it with you."
I shook my head.
"You keep making decisions and calling them surprises."
Chloe stood quietly.
I turned toward her.
"You said this wasn't the only thing he asked you to arrange."
She nodded.
"He also asked me to help organize a separate meeting."
"With whom?"
"Someone who handles personal financial planning."
I looked at Brad.
He didn't deny it.
"What kind of financial planning?"
Brad finally spoke.
"I wanted to make sure we were financially prepared for the future."
I stared at him.
"Which future?"
"The one we discussed. Having a family. Making changes to the house. Planning ahead."
I looked at the folder again.
There was nothing wrong with planning for the future.
But planning secretly was another matter.
I had spent months believing my husband was preparing to leave me.
Meanwhile, he had been making arrangements involving our future.
And he had never once thought to include me in the conversations.
I closed the folder.
"Why was Chloe involved in our finances?"
Brad looked uncomfortable.
"She helped schedule the meeting."
"Your secretary?"
"Yes."
"Your mistress?"
He lowered his head.
"Yes."
I took a breath.
I was tired of hearing that word connected to our home.
Chloe finally spoke.
"I didn't have access to your accounts. I only arranged the appointment and passed along the documents."
I looked at her.
"Did you know he was using our savings as part of the plan?"
She shook her head.
"No. I didn't know how he intended to pay for everything."
Brad interrupted.
"I hadn't committed us to anything."
I turned toward him.
"Then why did you hide it?"
He had no answer.
I looked at Chloe again.
"Is there anything else?"
She hesitated.
Then she removed another paper.
"This is the reason I sent the message."
I took it.
It was a copy of an email.
The sender was Brad.
The recipient was Chloe.
I read the first few lines.
He had asked her to deliver the documents.
He had also asked her to make sure I received the information about the appointment.
But near the bottom, I noticed another sentence.
"If she asks about our relationship, tell her I will explain everything after the meeting."
I looked up.
"What meeting?"
Brad stared at the floor.
Chloe answered.
"The meeting he planned with me."
My heart sank.
I had known about the hotel.
I had known about the time.
But I hadn't understood that the meeting was part of a larger arrangement.
Brad had intended to see Chloe and then return home with the paperwork.
He had planned to keep both sides of his life moving until he decided what to do.
I placed the email down.
"You were going to meet her and then come home to tell me about our future?"
Brad looked at me.
"I thought I could explain everything."
"After spending the morning with her?"
He didn't answer.
I felt sick.
I walked toward the window.
I remembered the cologne.
The blue shirt.
The tie.
All those details suddenly seemed even more insulting.
He hadn't simply forgotten our marriage.
He had dressed carefully for another woman while preparing to discuss our future with me.
I turned around.
"Brad, did you actually think I would accept that?"
"No."
"Then why?"
He looked exhausted.
"I didn't know how to stop what I'd started."
I stared at him.
For once, I believed he was telling the truth.
But that didn't make it better.
Chloe picked up her handbag.
"I should leave."
I nodded.
She reached for the door.
Then she turned back.
"I want you to know something."
I waited.
"I never wanted to become part of your marriage."
I looked at her.
"Then you should have stayed out of it."
She lowered her eyes.
"You're right."
She left.
The door closed.
Brad and I were alone again.
I looked at the folder.
Then at the pharmacy bag.
Then at the black mug beside the sink.
Our entire marriage seemed to be sitting in that kitchen.
Every promise.
Every lie.
Every plan we had made together.
And every decision he had made without me.
I turned toward him.
"Tomorrow, we're going to look at every document."
He nodded.
"And you're going to tell me exactly what you arranged."
"Okay."
"No surprises."
"Okay."
"And no more messages from Chloe explaining things you should have told me yourself."
He looked down.
I wasn't sure whether I believed him.
But I knew I couldn't keep living inside a marriage where everyone else seemed to know what was happening before I did.
That evening, I moved the pharmacy bag away from the coffee machine.
I placed it beside the folder.
For the first time, I wasn't afraid of opening it.
I was afraid of what else might be inside.
Click here to continue reading: PART 14: The Documents on Our Dining Table Forced Me to Face the Future Brad Had Planned Without Asking Me
I Thought My Husband Was Meeting Another Woman That Morning, Until One Small Detail Made Me Question Everything
Part 13 of 20
