For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Ryan stared at Emily.
“Baby, please.”
She stepped backward as though his voice physically hurt her.
“Don’t call me that.”
“Emily, I can explain.”
She looked at Vanessa.
“How could you?”
Vanessa began crying.
“I’m sorry. I never wanted you to find out this way.”
Emily’s expression hardened.
“Find out what way? Is there a better way to discover that your husband is sleeping with your best friend?”
Vanessa lowered her head.
Daniel stood behind us, his face pale.
“Vanessa,” he said quietly.
She turned toward him.
He looked at her for a long moment.
“Was any of it real?”
She began to cry harder.
“I didn’t mean for this to happen.”
Daniel nodded slowly.
“That’s not what I asked.”
She had no answer.
Ryan tried to approach Emily, but she raised her hand.
“Don’t come near me.”
“Please. We’ve been married for eight years. You’re not going to throw everything away over one mistake.”
Emily stared at him.
“One mistake?”
Her voice cracked.
“You didn’t accidentally end up in a bathtub with my best friend. You made a series of decisions, and every single one of them brought you here.”
Ryan looked at me.
“This is your fault. You should have given us a chance to explain privately.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
“You were the one who asked me to keep your affair a secret. You weren’t worried about Emily’s feelings. You were worried about getting caught.”
He looked away.
Emily removed her wedding ring.
For a moment, she held it in her palm.
Then she placed it on the bathroom counter.
“I’m going downstairs,” she said. “You have until I finish making one phone call to decide whether you’re leaving this house voluntarily.”
Ryan stared at her.
“You’re serious?”
She looked directly into his eyes.
“For the first time in years, I am.”
We went downstairs together.
