Page 71 of Wrong Marriage. Right Groom
Monitor to my left. Phone dock to my right. Notepad within easy reach. Every object placed with deliberate precision.
I exhaled slowly and placed both hands flat on the desk.
I was about to begin working when faint footsteps echoed somewhere behind me.
Not at my desk.
Further down the corridor.
I paused, my fingers hovering above the keyboard as I listened.
The footsteps drew closer.
My grip tightened slightly on the edge of the desk before I forced it to loosen.
The corridor seemed to grow quieter with each approaching step.
The footsteps continued until they stopped directly outside the single door separating my office from Rafael Pérez’s.
My pulse stumbled.
For some reason, I knew.
I knew exactly who had arrived.
I straightened my posture again, shoulders squared with the practiced poise.
My chair rolled back softly as I stood, smoothing my blouse in a single fluid motion.
I turned toward the source of the footsteps.
“Good morning, Mr. Pérez,” I said clearly.
He stopped.
I felt his reaction through the subtle shift in the air pressure around him.
He hadn’t expected me to identify him so quickly.
My chin remained slightly lifted and composed.
“Good morning, Loretta. I wasn’t informed we’d be receiving another guest today. Is this your daughter?”
Something in the way he said it made the air tighten further.
I swallowed once, steadying myself.
“Yes, sir. I realize this isn’t a conventional start to my first day. I apologize for bringing her here. She’s unwell, and I had no one I trusted to care for her. If there’s a consequence for that decision, I’ll accept it.”
A heavy silence descended.
It lasted only a few seconds, yet it felt long enough for the air itself to turn brittle.
Then I felt the atmosphere in the room darkened so abruptly that every instinct in my body went on alert.
When Rafael spoke again, his voice was stripped of all warmth.
“Loretta.”
