I crossed my arms.
“Apparently I check my phone too much.”
Linda looked embarrassed.
Ryan stared between us.
Then Mark told him about the underwear.
Ryan covered his face.
“Oh, God.”
I said, “That seems to be everyone’s reaction except mine.”
He looked genuinely horrified.
“I wondered where those went.”
Mark pointed at him.
“You’re getting them back.”
“Please don’t.”
For the first time all day, I laughed.
Even Mark did.
Linda didn’t.
She was staring at the papers in her lap.
- After I Gained Weight from Having Twins, My Husband Gave Me an AI Portrait of Myself as a Size-Zero Model, Saying, ‘I’m Waiting for You to Look Like This Again’ – The Next Day, He Froze When He Saw My Gift for Him
- Without My Permission, My Future SIL Took the Wedding Dress My Late Grandma Made for Me – So I Brought Her a Wedding Gift That Made Her Regret It
- My Neighbor Kept Throwing Soda Cans Into My Flower Beds and Called Me ‘Too Sensitive’ – So I Collected Every One
Then she looked at me.
“Why were you coming home late?”
I couldn’t believe she was asking now.
But I answered.
“Interviews.”
Her brow furrowed.
“For what?”
“A promotion at another company.”
Mark turned.
“What?”
I looked at him.
“Surprise.”
He stared at me.
“You’ve been interviewing?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because I wasn’t sure I wanted it yet.”
Linda asked, “And all the phone calls?”
“Recruiters. Emails. Scheduling.”
She looked down.
“You could have told me.”
I laughed once.
“You could have asked me.”
Her face changed.
“I thought you’d lie.”
“So instead, you decided what the truth was.”
Ryan looked at her.
Then he said quietly, “You did the same thing again.”
Linda turned.
“What?”
He gestured toward me.
“You saw something that looked bad. You decided what it meant. Then you stopped asking questions.”
Linda stared at him.
Ryan continued.
“That’s what happened with me.”
Her eyes filled.
“I had paperwork.”
“And she had underwear.”
Linda flinched.
Mark looked away.
Ryan’s voice softened as he said, “I’m not saying you had no reason to be suspicious. I’m saying you decided suspicion was the same thing as proof.”
That finally broke through.
Linda looked at me.
“I was wrong.”
I didn’t answer.
She swallowed.
“I shouldn’t have searched your room.”
“No.”
“I shouldn’t have changed the lock.”
“No.”
