California Girls(34)

“Hey, back.”

Finola looked at the three members of her family. She knew she could trust them with her broken heart, that they would be there for her and take care of her. She let her grip on her self-control slip a little and tears instantly filled her eyes.

“Nigel left me.”

“What? No!”

“That’s impossible. He adores you.”

“Are you okay? What happened?”

The questions flew around her. Finola covered her face with her hands and started to sob. She was led through the house to the kitchen where someone helped her into a chair. A box of tissues appeared in front of her. Mary Jo and Ali sat on either side of her while Zennie boiled water for tea. Her mother kept rubbing her back.

“Tell us what happened,” she said, her voice gentle. “Once we know what’s wrong, we can help you fix it.”

“There’s nothing to fix.” Finola grabbed a handful of tissues. After wiping her face, she blew her nose. “You can’t tell anyone. No one can know. I mean it. You can’t tell anyone, no matter what. If this gets out, I’ll be ruined.”

It was going to get out, she thought grimly. It was just a matter of time.

“Of course we won’t say anything,” Ali assured her. “But, Finola, Nigel couldn’t have left you. He loves you. We can all see it, every time he looks at you.”

“I wish that were true, but it’s not. He’s having an affair.”

“With who?” her mother asked. “What bitch did this? Was it someone at his office? It’s always the young receptionist.”

“Mom, don’t,” Zennie said from the stove.

“You don’t know it wasn’t her.”

“You don’t know it was.”

Finola took Ali’s hand and laced their fingers together. She and her sister had always been close. Ali would give her strength.

“He told me last Friday, right before the show.”

“I knew it!” her mother crowed. “You said it was food poisoning but I knew you were off for another reason.”

Finola told them what had happened. She started with Nigel’s blunt declaration and ended with Nigel’s visit the previous day.

“They’ve gone to Chile to ski,” she said, still crying. “I don’t think he’s coming back. I think it’s over.”

“It’s not over,” Ali said soothingly. “I can’t believe he would do this. Maybe he hit his head or something because we all know he loves you.”

“I’m never getting grandchildren,” Mary Jo complained.

“Mom!” Ali and Zennie said together.

“You’re not helping,” Zennie added, setting a mug of tea in front of Finola.

“I wish he’d hit his head, but he hasn’t,” she said, releasing Ali and taking the mug in both hands. “He says it’s my fault he cheated.”

“What? No.” Zennie sat down across from her. “That’s crazy. You’re way too good to him. You spoil him.”

“It’s important to spoil a man,” her mom said, looking pointedly at Zennie. “Something you would know if you ever stayed in a relationship more than fifteen minutes.”

Finola sniffed. “What happened?”

“Nothing,” Zennie said, glaring at their mother. “Clark and I broke up, but we were hardly dating. It’s no big deal.”

Mary Jo sighed. “What a horrible week. First Zennie, then Finola, then—” She jumped, as if someone had kicked her.

“Not now,” Ali said quickly, glaring at her mother. “This is more important.”

Finola knew there was something going on, but honestly, she just couldn’t find it in herself to care about anything but her own pain.

“You don’t deserve this,” Ali continued, turning back to Finola. “You were always so careful. You knew you wanted a career, so you never played around with guys. You barely dated in college because you didn’t want to be distracted. You chose Nigel. Doesn’t he know what he has in you? You’re perfect.”

Finola basked in the warm praise even as she knew her sister wasn’t right about any of it. At least not the perfect part. She had been careful in college, not wanting to get tied down. It was easier not to date than to risk falling in love. When she’d met Nigel, she’d known right away he was the one, and he’d felt the same way about her. Everything had been so easy with him, she thought, fighting new tears. So wonderful. They’d been good together.

She’d warned him her mother could be difficult, so the first time she’d brought Nigel to this house, he’d been charming and attentive to Mary Jo, winning her over when no other guy ever had. He’d been sweet to Ali and Zennie, remembering all the birthdays and helping her buy presents. How could he have changed so much?

“I just don’t know what to do,” she whispered. “It’s going to come out. If he was dating a regular person, no one would really care, but this is Treasure. The press follows her every move. They know she has a thing for married men and they always go after the wife. Most people get to suffer through an affair in private, but not when Treasure’s involved.”

She thought about her show and her viewers and how they were all going to judge her. At some point she would have to tell her producers and Rochelle. She shuddered, thinking of the humiliation and how people would pity her.