On The Couch: Moment of Truth
“You knew this day was coming, Connie, don’t look so surprised,” Her ex said, frowning slightly at her from across the nice café table.
When she had agreed to meet her ex and his girlfriend for lunch she had thought it would be another discussion about their custody agreement. That’s what they usually talked about when Anna wasn’t around. She did not expect the smiling, happy girlfriend to shove a ring the size of a cat’s eye in her face and ask her if she liked it.
Her ex was getting remarried. Her ex was getting remarried to a woman who was younger, taller, blonde and had bigger boobs. Most of the time Murphy tolerated her ex at best and other times she downright hated him but it still felt like a punch in the gut to see the evidence that he was really moving on. Forever.
“What does Anna think about it?” she asked after stomping down the aching part of her and locking it away in a dark corner.
“I haven’t told her yet,” Neal said.
“What?” She looked at her ex like he was insane and just a bit stupid. “You told me before you told our daughter?”
“I wanted to make sure that when she called to tell you, you wouldn’t freak out on her,” he explained like she was just a bit slow. “She always calls you.”
“Well, she’s my daughter, it does make her call me when her life changes.”
She could feel the fight brewing under her skin. Not only was her ex getting remarried he had told her about it before their daughter. That seemed completely backwards to her. She could have kept her cool on the phone when Anna told her about it. She was a cop for God’s sake, but lashing out at him wasn’t going to fix anything.
“Look,” she said after taking a deep breath. “I’m not the person you should be talking to about this. I don’t give a damn if you get married unless it makes our daughter unhappy, then I’ll care. If Anna’s okay with it, you can do what you want Neal. It’s your life.”
A life she wasn’t really part of anymore, except for their daughter. If they had never had Anna, he would have moved on without a single word to her or a thought. She was periphery to his life now when at one point she had been the center of it. Funny how time changed things. It didn’t hurt so much as depress her. He was getting remarried and she was basically still in the same place she was when they divorced, only a little more scarred and a lot tougher.
“I’ll try to be home for Anna’s call. Have a good lunch. I’ve got a killer to find.” She got up with a tight smile and went back to her car. At least murder never changed. She could always count on people killing one another to be part of her life. Lucky her.
When she had agreed to meet her ex and his girlfriend for lunch she had thought it would be another discussion about their custody agreement. That’s what they usually talked about when Anna wasn’t around. She did not expect the smiling, happy girlfriend to shove a ring the size of a cat’s eye in her face and ask her if she liked it.
Her ex was getting remarried. Her ex was getting remarried to a woman who was younger, taller, blonde and had bigger boobs. Most of the time Murphy tolerated her ex at best and other times she downright hated him but it still felt like a punch in the gut to see the evidence that he was really moving on. Forever.
“What does Anna think about it?” she asked after stomping down the aching part of her and locking it away in a dark corner.
“I haven’t told her yet,” Neal said.
“What?” She looked at her ex like he was insane and just a bit stupid. “You told me before you told our daughter?”
“I wanted to make sure that when she called to tell you, you wouldn’t freak out on her,” he explained like she was just a bit slow. “She always calls you.”
“Well, she’s my daughter, it does make her call me when her life changes.”
She could feel the fight brewing under her skin. Not only was her ex getting remarried he had told her about it before their daughter. That seemed completely backwards to her. She could have kept her cool on the phone when Anna told her about it. She was a cop for God’s sake, but lashing out at him wasn’t going to fix anything.
“Look,” she said after taking a deep breath. “I’m not the person you should be talking to about this. I don’t give a damn if you get married unless it makes our daughter unhappy, then I’ll care. If Anna’s okay with it, you can do what you want Neal. It’s your life.”
A life she wasn’t really part of anymore, except for their daughter. If they had never had Anna, he would have moved on without a single word to her or a thought. She was periphery to his life now when at one point she had been the center of it. Funny how time changed things. It didn’t hurt so much as depress her. He was getting remarried and she was basically still in the same place she was when they divorced, only a little more scarred and a lot tougher.
“I’ll try to be home for Anna’s call. Have a good lunch. I’ve got a killer to find.” She got up with a tight smile and went back to her car. At least murder never changed. She could always count on people killing one another to be part of her life. Lucky her.