Free Deception by Evie Rose

breath trying to calm his irritation. “It’s okay, they’re cooking the food, I can get them,” I say quickly, to avoid a scene.
    Ricky joins us for dinner and thankfully goes off to sleep quickly afterwards, so I don’t have to be away from our guests for too long. The guys compare business stories, talk about sports – even though I know Joseph could care less about sports, he just wants to look good in front of his friend, and the good old days – they went to school together. For some reason, they think it’s something to be proud of talking about how drunk they got on senior camp, how hilarious it was when they snuck up on all the girls in the middle of the night and scared the shit out of them, or the time they humiliated the school loser. Why did I not see this side of him when we first got together? He used to be so charming.
    “Come dance with me.” Tanya pulls me to my feet and we dance around the back deck. I can feel the wine traveling through me with every move. It clears all the heavy thoughts that usually cloud my mind and makes me feel weightless, as though I’m floating, but at the same time like I could fall flat on my ass. This thought has me giggling and squealing along with Tanya, when the latest Jessica Mauboy song comes on.
    “I love this song!” We jump up and down and I’m actually having fun.
    “I don’t,” Joseph is getting a little fed up with the poppy music we are playing, but for once, I don’t care. It could be the alcohol coursing through my veins that has me disregarding the consequences that will surely come later.
    What’s he going to do about it now, though? Turn it off and cause a scene in front of his friend? I don’t think so, he’s all about appearances.
    “Why don’t we go out then? Hit the clubs for a little while and let the men listen to that head-banging rubbish they enjoy so much,” Tanya suggests.
    I wish it were that easy . There is no way Joseph will go for that though.
    “I think that’s a great idea. I love seeing you shake that sexy ass of yours baby, but that pop is giving me a damn headache,” Alex agrees, putting Joseph in an awkward position. He doesn’t like me going out without him, but hates to look controlling and insecure in front of anyone. I’ve stopped dancing, waiting for how Joseph is going to respond. I’d love the chance to go out and be young and free again, and escape from my usual day to day life.
    “What about Ricky? He doesn’t have a baby sitter,” Joseph asks.
    Tanya rolls her eyes at his argument. “He doesn’t need one. You’re still going to be here. And he’s asleep, how hard can it be?” She’s right, surely nothing can go wrong if Ricky is peacefully sleeping and we’re only gone a few hours. “Don’t worry about us either. It’ll just be a girl’s night out. We’ll look out for each other, dance for a couple of hours and come straight home.” Joseph just nods, most likely too annoyed to speak, while Tanya tugs on my arm and leads me into the house. “Come on. Let’s get you dressed for the clubs, before they change their minds.”
    I look down at my jeans and a t-shirt, then at her tight fitted mini skirt and a tank, wondering what kind of outfit she has in mind for me, and if Joseph will let me out the door in it. She chooses a little black dress from the back of my closet. It isn’t too revealing, not too short or too low cut, however it fits like a glove and I don’t think Joseph will approve. Tanya must think so too, because she smirks and hands me a knee length jacket.
    While waiting for our cab, Tanya visits the bathroom and Joseph ducks into the room and hands me my wedding ring. “Make sure you wear this, and don’t go slutting around.” He gives me a pointed look, but avoids saying anything else when he hears Tanya washing her hands and making her way back to my side.
    “Sounds like our ride just showed up,” she says, as a horn honks from the drive. We say our goodbyes to the guys