Chapter 5
Half an hour later, I was standing outside the biggest mall downtown.
I headed straight for the maternity and baby store.
The luxury skincare I use during pregnancy was almost gone.
There were so many new maternity outfits for the later months—so many cute styles to choose from.
And those tiny baby clothes? Seriously, they're ridiculously cute.
I handed the card to the cashier with a smile.
"Just swipe it, no PIN needed," I said.
The cashier took the card with a polite smile. "Please wait a moment, ma'am."
I sat there, fiddling with the tiny baby clothes. I figured I'd have to call Vera to pick me up later; there was no way I could carry all this back by myself with this bump.
As I looked up, I saw Matt and Elaine again.
Matt lowered his head a little, chatting with Elaine, his mood clearly upbeat.
They walked into the store together, all cozy and close.
My husband was shopping for baby stuff with another woman, looking all happy.
He didn't even look my way, even though I'm his wife, seven months pregnant.
I couldn't help feeling hurt and upset.
So I just rubbed my belly, turned away, and pretended I didn't see a thing.
"Ma'am, your card" The cashier hesitated, looking a little uncomfortable.
She came over with the POS machine, clearly unsure what to do.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"It won't go through."
My heart sinking, I fished out the second card.
"Sorry, this one's not working either," the cashier said.
I passed her the third card.
The cashier gave me a look—awkward, a little sympathetic.
"Ma'am, this one's not working either," she said.
The store wasn't crowded, but everyone was staring at me.
Matt actually walked over.
"What's going on?" he asked.
I didn't bother answering—just gave him a sarcastic look.
He turned to the cashier for an explanation.
The cashier replied truthfully.
"None of her cards are working," the cashier explained.
Matt didn't say a word—just pulled out his own card.
"Use this one," he said.
"No need," I said, stopping the cashier from swiping.
"I don't want the stuff. Sorry," I said.
I turned to leave, but Matt caught up to me.
"I didn't freeze your cards. If I really wanted to, I wouldn't have gone out of my way to hide them in your suitcase," he said.
I neatly tucked the three cards into his suit pocket.
"Here, take your cards back," I said.
Right then, it didn't matter to me anymore whether it was him or anyone else.
Matt wouldn't let me leave.
"I'll get to the bottom of this and give you an explanation," he said.
He called Mr. Taylor.
"What's going on with my wife's three cards?" Matt asked.
"Mr. Quinn, Ms. Lynn said you told her to do it," Mr. Taylor replied.
Matt hung up and turned to Elaine.
"Explain yourself," he said.
Elaine didn't even flinch. "I was just trying to help. You said you wanted Rachel to see how hard life could be, so I just went along with your plan.
"I wanted Rachel to realize how good she has it with you. Once she's cut off from your money, she'll finally see how tough things get without you."
"She won't have to suffer if she comes back to you," she added.
"If you think I did something wrong, then I apologize to both you and Rachel," Elaine said.
She was straightforward, but her intentions were anything but simple—she really thought it through for Matt's sake.
Every move she made was all about Matt.
Matt eats it up every time.
"No need to apologize, but don't make decisions on your own again," Matt said.
Matt just couldn't bring himself to be hard on Elaine, so he turned to me instead.
"It's my fault. Elaine was only looking out for us," he said.
He put the cards back into my hand.
"I told you, what's mine is yours," he said.
He gently ruffled my hair.
"I'm completely at your mercy for the rest of my life," Matt said.
"Getting you to admit you're wrong is like pulling teeth," I said.
"Since you won't back down, neither will I," I added.
"Honey, I was wrong," Matt said.
"Your bump is getting bigger, and I'm worried. Let's go home," he said.
See? He finally gave in.
It had been a month.
I should be happy—he was back to pampering me just like before.
But I still couldn't bring myself to feel happy.
I put the cards back in his hand.
"Matt, you didn't do anything wrong. You should keep your cards," I said.
"As for going home, forget it. That's your home, not mine," I added.
"Who says it's not yours? That's our home," Matt said.
I scoffed.
"If it was really my home, you wouldn't have kicked me out," I shot back.
I jerked my hand out of Matt's grip.
"Just stay away. I can't stand to look at you right now," I snapped.
Matt tried to stop me.
Elaine grabbed his arm and pulled him back.
"Matt, Rachel's really upset right now. Let her cool off. You don't want her getting too worked up and hurting the baby," Elaine said.
Matt didn't try to stop me again.
I couldn't help but laugh.
Back when he threw me out, he didn't give a damn whether I was freaking out or if it would hurt the baby.
Now that I couldn't care less, suddenly he's all concerned.
As I walked away, Matt waved the cashier over and gestured toward the items I had picked out. "Ring it up.".
Matt loaded everything into the trunk, then turned to Elaine.
"You should head back. I've got something to take care of," he said.
"Seriously, don't go chasing after Rachel," Elaine said, just standing there and watching him.
Matt's hand froze for a moment, but he didn't say anything.
"You saw how she was today. Do you really think just saying sorry and trying to win her over will make her come back?" Elaine said.
Matt knew Rachel was stubborn as hell.
But if he didn't try to make it up to her, there was no way she'd ever come back.
He was always the one backing down—why can't she be the one to give in for once?
"Matt, instead of always groveling to her, why not let her be the one begging you for a change?" Elaine said.