The New Husband(70)
CHAPTER 38
That week and into the next was an especially busy time at The Davis Family Center. Oddly enough, given all the human drama Nina dealt with, it was something of a respite from her battles on the home front. Simon explained he had bruised his knuckles in a fall at school, but secretly Nina wondered if he had punched a wall in frustration. Maggie had decided to give Simon the silent treatment; a consequence, she explained to her mother, of her continued belief that he was to blame for the missing lab report—refusing to take any responsibility of her own. It was no surprise when, once again, Simon used Maggie’s behavior as proof this was not the best time for Nina to devote herself to work outside the home.
Something else about Maggie had been troubling Nina of late, and her motherly instinct told her it had nothing to do with Simon. It was normal, expected, for her daughter to pull away at this age, but for some reason, the distance felt different. When pressed, Maggie said it was nothing, but she couldn’t deliver the rebuttal with eye contact, and Nina could hear the strain in her daughter’s voice. There was something Maggie was holding back, Nina felt sure of it.
Either way, she was ready to move on with Simon while continuing to help her daughter adjust. She was equally ready to forget all about Hugh Dolan, who had stopped messaging when it became clear that she would not pay him a dime.
Now more than ever, Nina was sure the whole thing had been nothing but a scare tactic on his part, a way of drumming up money for his habit. He had seen an opportunity and taken advantage of it, nothing more. As for Nina’s investigation into Simon’s past, that was over and done with as well, erased like the browser history she had taken care of before Simon had woken up that day. She had felt foolish for thinking he might have snuck downstairs while she slept to check up on her activities, but regardless, she had to get rid of the evidence.
All this nonsense and noise was in her head. Nina credited the work she’d been doing with Dr. Wilcox for her renewed determination to jettison the baggage she’d been lugging around, to give in completely to Simon and trust his love.
At her therapy appointment Nina wasn’t sure where to begin. Should she talk about seeing Teresa again after all this time, and what she had revealed, as well as her lingering doubts about the extent of the affair? She hadn’t told Simon about Teresa, in part because it would have required a lengthy explanation as to why she went looking, not to mention the possibility of revealing her deception on the night she visited Carson.
What about Hugh? Or maybe the focus should be on Maggie’s latest accusations that Simon had stolen her homework (reason unknown). Perhaps it was best to discuss the pressures of her new job. But of all the people and things she could have discussed, it was Connor’s face that flashed in Nina’s mind, specifically his broad grin as he’d showed off the Bowflex machine he had helped put together. So that’s where she began.
“How did the gift make you feel?” Dr. Wilcox asked after Nina explained Simon’s big surprise.
“Well, part of me, of course, thought it was quite sweet of him.”
Dr. Wilcox keyed in on Nina’s hesitation. “And the other part?”
“I hate to use the word.”
“It’s fine to say, I promise.”
“I guess…” Nina cleared her throat. “I guess the word that came to mind was ‘controlling.’”
Dr. Wilcox’s brow furrowed. “In what way?”
Nina explained how Simon had been deeply disappointed that she chose to go out with her girlfriends rather than work on the lawn as he had wished.
“In fact, my friends want us to work out together this coming Saturday, but it doesn’t feel right or fair to leave Simon alone with Maggie on the weekend, especially now that I have a home gym to get my sweat on. So I backed out, disappointed them, again.”
“Why do you think he bought you that equipment?”
“I’m not sure,” Nina said.
Dr. Wilcox ruminated a moment. “Sounds to me a bit like the insecurity he displays around your job,” she observed.
Nina nodded, because indeed there were parallels.
With patience and professionalism, Dr. Wilcox had helped Nina shine a light into the dark places, revealing in clear detail the damage Glen had inflicted on her psyche. Affair or fling, the hurt along with the ripples of his betrayal, had grown into a rip current that threatened to drag her and Simon under. Perhaps a joint session with Dr. Wilcox was the life preserver they both required.
It was decided. Nina would ask Simon to join her at therapy. She felt it would be the start of a new beginning for them.
She even established a new mantra: Get your head on straight, get your life on track, and get your family healthy again. To show her commitment, Nina picked up the phone to call Ginny and honor the promise she had made to Simon. It should be easy, she told herself. She had plenty of practice canceling plans with her friends.
“Come on,” Ginny said in a plaintive voice after Nina broke the news. “It won’t be the same without you.”
“Sorry, I’m really sorry, but I’m swamped here. I can’t do it, Gin,” Nina said, looking at the mini mountain of papers and folders on her office desk, thinking it wasn’t exactly a lie.
Ginny’s lengthy silence said even more than her words. She didn’t come right out and blame Simon, or rehash old concerns, only because she didn’t have to.