Chapter 3 - The Return of the Groom
It took Ethan two days to get back to Ohio.
I found out later, through mutual acquaintances, that he and Rebecca had to borrow money from her furious parents just to book a budget flight home. Their 'romantic' weekend had ended with them getting kicked out of their hotel suite because the card on file kept declining the room charges.
It was Thursday afternoon. I was sitting at my home office desk, typing up a report for work, when I heard the unmistakable screech of tires in the driveway.
I didn't panic. I saved my document, closed my laptop, and walked calmly to the large window overlooking the front yard.
An Uber idled by the curb. Ethan stepped out, looking absolutely disheveled. He was wearing the same clothes from the Vegas photo, wrinkled and stained. Rebecca trailed behind him, dragging a pink suitcase. She looked less like a triumphant new bride and more like a woman who hadn't slept or showered in forty-eight hours.
Ethan marched up to the front door and jammed his key into the lock.
Nothing happened.
He jiggled it. He pushed his shoulder against the heavy wood. Still nothing.
Through the glass panes of the door, I watched his face turn from confused to furious. He pounded a fist against the doorframe, screaming my name. "Clara! Open this damn door! I know you're in there!"
I unlocked the deadbolt and opened the door exactly two inches, leaving the heavy brass chain engaged.
"Ethan," I said, my voice as mild as if I were greeting a mailman.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" he bellowed, his face turning an ugly shade of red. "You stranded me in Nevada! You cut off all my money! And what did you do to the locks?!"
"I changed them," I replied smoothly. "And I didn't cut off your money, Ethan. I cut off my money. You are currently trespassing on my property."
Rebecca stepped up behind him, peering over his shoulder with a vicious glare. "You can't do this, Clara. This is his house too! He has rights!"
I shifted my gaze to the woman who had spent eight months sleeping with my husband. She was younger than me, twenty-six maybe, with dyed blonde hair that was currently frizzy at the roots.
"Actually, Rebecca," I said, leaning slightly against the doorframe, "the deed is solely in my name. Purchased prior to the marriage. Ohio is an equitable distribution state, not community property. My lawyer assures me he has no legal right to enter these premises without a court order, especially after abandoning the marital home to commit bigamy."
Ethan’s jaw dropped. "Bigamy? It was a joke wedding, Clara! It wasn't real! We were drunk!"
"A joke?" I raised an eyebrow, looking at Rebecca. Her face instantly fell, her eyes darting to Ethan in shock.
"Ethan, you told me..." Rebecca stammered, her voice trembling. "You told me we were making it official."
"Shut up, Becca!" he snapped at her, completely losing his cool. He turned back to me, trying to force a pathetic, pleading smile. "Clara, baby, listen. Things got out of hand. I was stressed. The text was just... I was drunk. Open the door, let's talk about this inside like adults."
I looked at him—really looked at him. At the bags under his eyes, the desperation in his posture, the absolute lack of respect he had for me, and now, evidently, for Rebecca too.
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"There is a trash bag by the rosebushes," I said coldly. "It has enough clothes for a week. My lawyer, Sarah Evans, will contact you tomorrow. If you step foot on this porch again, I will call the police and have you arrested."
I shut the door, locked the deadbolt, and walked away, leaving the sounds of Ethan and Rebecca screaming at each other on my lawn.
