Free Secret Lives Of Husbands And Wives by Josie Brown Page A

has struck gold.
    But then something else catches her attention. She sets down the rock and the casserole in order to pull a powder blue Ladies’ Schwinn bike out from behind the hedge.
    We all recognize it as Margot’s. Did she hide it so that we would not guess that she is inside with Harry?
    Tammy and Colleen exchange knowing glances. As for me, I am numbed by shock. Is Harry having an affair—with
Margot
?
    I may not want to know the answer to that, but Colleen is bound and determined to catch them red-handed. In one giant leap she’s up on the stoop, balancing the casserole dish in one hand as she fits the key into the lock with the other.
    She is still fidgeting with it when suddenly the door opens. Harry peers out. He is cradling Lucky, Temple’s wriggling Airedale pup, in the crook of his arm. Seeing that it’s us, he forces his lips into a smile. When his gaze gets to me, he does a double take and his blue eyes cloud over.
    Hey, don’t blame me. This
was not
my idea. . . . 
    But I can tell he’s not buying it. I sigh. Granted, I could just walk home from here and by doing so avoid the knowledge that my idol has clay feet. Too late. I’ll just suck it up for now.
    He puts an index finger to his lips and points to his Bluetooth headset, then motions for us to enter. As we troop in after him, Tammy’s and Colleen’s eyes scan the room for any sign of Margot.Nothing. However, I’m somewhat pleased to note that the whole living room has become a playroom. DeeDee’s Ethan Allen collection now serves as a super-size Bratz showroom.
    “. . . Yeah, right, Edwin. . . . Yeah, sure I agree, go for it. . . . Yeah, I said I don’t care, just do it.” Harry shrugs indifferently as he speaks, but he is pacing the floor, a ball of nervous energy. I’m glad his divorce attorney finally has good news for him, because thus far Bethany has been wiping the floor with him. “Look, I have someone at the door. Gotta go. . . . No, I went in yesterday, but I’m working from home today. . . . Yeah, Bradley’s been on my back about it, but that’s the way it’s got to be these days. It’s my turn for carpool.” The steely grin is back, for our benefit, not Edwin’s, I’m sure. “If I go in for a few hours tomorrow, I’ll stop by.”
    He clicks off the headset, then tosses it onto a cushioned chair already loaded with Barbies and stuffed animals. “Well, ladies, nice to see you—and to see you
again,
Colleen.”
    She colors a bit. “Oh, well, when I dropped off those strawberries from my garden, I did mention that I had something else for you to, ah, munch on later.”
    From her seductive tone, it is obvious to everyone that it was not the casserole that she previously had in mind.
    Not to be outdone, Tammy holds up her bag of goodies. “I come bearing gifts, too.”
    “Oh? Gee, you shouldn’t have.” Warily he takes the bag, but he doesn’t dare look inside. Lucky sees this as the perfect time to make his escape. He bounds out of Harry’s arm and skitters out of the room.
    “It was the least I could do. After our little accident in the laundry and all.”
    “What little accident?” Colleen can barely hide her jealousy.
    Harry turns beet red. “She . . . I . . . well, I guess you could say that I got distracted. Wrong washer setting.” He looks pointedly at Tammy, but he carefully avoids my eyes.
    Oh . . . my . . . God. Maybe he does have something to hide.
    From the kitchen comes the sound of the back screen door creaking shut. Harry must have heard it too, because he stares in that direction.
    I take it Margot has made her getaway.
    Ah, so
that’s
how it is. . . . 
    The others are too enthralled with their host to have heard it. Nevertheless, I am repulsed. All I can think about is getting out of there too. “Wow, look at the time! I’ve got to go pick up my kids. . . .”
    Despite this very broad hint, neither Colleen nor Tammy is ready to go—at least,