Free Addictive Collision by Sierra Rose Page B

he said. “I still do, in a way.”
    “Did you ever really want all the things we worked so hard to build, like our family and our home? Or was it all a farce?”
    “Yes, I wanted all that, but I didn’t know who I was when I married you. I know it sounds corny, but it took me some time to find myself. I have to be true to myself, Morgan, and this is...well, it’s me—the real me.”
    “But you hid it from me! Didn’t you know that would destroy me?”
    “I can’t fight the feelings I have for men. I’ve always had them, but I tried to pretend they weren’t real. I married you in the hopes they would go away, but they didn’t. They just got stronger. I’m so sorry I’ve put you through all this, and it really does kill me to see you upset like this. I just—”
    “You just lied! If you felt this way, you shoulda put this marriage out of its misery a long damn time ago.”
    “I was fighting it. I really was, Morgan. I was trying to make it work.”
    “I’m the perfect cover for your lifestyle. When you fed me all that bull about your reputation, you really meant you were worried about revealing your lifestyle. That’s the only reason you haven’t already divorced me.”
    He answered with only a gentle kiss to my forehead, one that repulsed me. “I think it’s best you go,” he said as Adrian started coming down the stairs, dressed only in boxers.
    “This isn’t gonna look good in court for you, Tom.”
    “Morgan, please don’t go public with this. Our divorce doesn’t have to be bitter and hostile. Please don’t tell anyone. You’ll ruin everything I’ve worked so hard for, and the university will—”
    Dismissing his pleas with a wave of my hand, I turned to leave.
    “Morgan!” he screamed just as I reached the door. “Wait!” He chased me out of the house and all the way to the car, then began pounding on the window. “Please don’t tell anyone,” he begged. “I’ll give you whatever you want.”
    I rolled my eyes and sped off, heartbroken and destroyed. Everything was a blur, and nothing made sense.
    ***
    W hen I finally made it back to my sister’s house, the whole sordid story tumbled out of me between sobs and pants. “Why didn’t I know?” I asked as I cried on her shoulder. “I should’ve seen it, but I didn’t. It was a complete shock.”
    She stroked my hair. “None of us would have ever suspected this,” she said.
    “Well, I sure as hell didn’t,” I said. “Somehow, it’s just...worse than if he was banging every one of those slutty coeds that follow him around like puppies.”
    “I know, Morgan,” Alexis said. “I know. But hey, at least you know he wasn’t knocking anyone up, right? And I wonder which one of them dropped the soap before you barged in the bathroom.”
    “Ew!” I said, my sniffles breaking into some halfhearted chuckles. It was a disgusting thought, but I loved that my sister could always make me laugh.
    “You know what they say.”
    “What?”
    “Every time you find some humor in a difficult situation, you win.”
    ***
    W eeks passed, and Tom finally knocked on the door of my sister’s house. “Are the kids here?” he  asked bluntly when I answered.
    I crossed my arms. “No. They’re at school,” I said, tapping my watch. “They’ll be home soon.”
    “Good, because I need to talk to you.”
    “What? Tom, I really don’t think we have anything to—”
    “Morgan, just hear me out,” he said, cutting me off. “You can move back into the house. I’ve made other arrangements. I think it would be best for the girls to be at home, a more...stable environment.”
    “Hmm. Moving in with your lover, are you?” I asked.
    “I’ve got a house a few miles from here. I want to stay close so I can see the kids.”
    “How am I supposed to make it on a receptionist’s pay, Tom?” I asked. “The mortgage alone is astronomical.”
    “I’ll pay you child support. All I ask is that you keep my sexuality to yourself. I work at