They would make a good couple. They look better together than Nick and I do these days, that’s for sure. I’m sure he feels some sort of tug of attraction towards her. He’s got to be tempted.
Before I can stop myself, I reach for my phone. I select his number and wait for it to ring. Through the binoculars, I can tell he feels it buzzing in his pocket. He steps away from the car, pulls out his phone and looks at the number. Will he take my call when he’s with his beautiful motel guest?
He does.
“Rosie?” he says. “What’s wrong?”
“Having fun digging out that car? Maybe you should have a snowball fight.”
There’s a long pause on the other line. “I’m just helping her dig out her car, Rosie. She’s stuck in the snow.”
“I’ll bet.”
“Come on, Rosie. That’s not fair.”
“Fair to whom?”
He lets out a long sigh. “What do you want me to do? I have to help. It’s the decent thing to do.”
“Right. And you always do the decent thing, don’t you, Nick?”
He doesn’t take the bait, which makes my words seem jealous and petty. “I’ll be done here soon. Is there something you need?”
“Tell your little friend to keep my boots. They look good on her.”
Nick raises his eyes to look up at our house. I quickly lower the binoculars, even though he can’t possibly tell I have them from all the way over there. If he knew I was spying on him with binoculars… Well, I’m not sure what he would do. Probably nothing. But the whole thing is embarrassing.
“I’ll be back later,” he mumbles.
Then he disconnects the call.
Even though I shouldn’t, I keep watching them. They don’t quite manage to get her car unstuck, which isn’t surprising because we got hit hard by snow. But it means they return to the motel together. At one point, she stumbles in the snow and he catches her.
She’s still got my boots on. I wonder if she really will keep them. The thought is like a knife in my chest.
I doze off after that. I always get so tired in the afternoon. Sometimes if Nick is around, I ask him to put me back in bed, but most of the time, I just sleep in my wheelchair. It’s easier that way.
When I wake up, Nick is in her room.
I reach into the drawer by the bed and pull out my binoculars so I can get a better look. They’re sitting together on the bed. No, not just sitting together. He’s rubbing her back. They’re talking, but I can’t hear what they’re saying.
I wonder if I can persuade Greta to put a listening device in room 203.
No. Too far.
My heart is pounding as I watch him. But Nick isn’t doing anything wrong. They’re just sitting together and talking. There’s nothing wrong with talking.
Until they start kissing.
Chapter 35
I can’t believe what I’m seeing. He swore to me he would never do anything like that again. Yet here he is, kissing another woman. Breaking his marriage vows for a second time.
Not that I’m surprised. I mean, that’s why I got the binoculars.
It’s a little different this time. They’re not making out like he was with Christina. He kisses her, then he jumps up off the bed. He’s gesturing with his arms. Then he looks out the window.
Shit. He sees me.
I lower the binoculars and throw them onto the bed. Did he see the binoculars? I’m not sure about that. I hope not.
Even without the binoculars, I can see him exit the other woman’s room. Probably coming over here to grovel. Again. I have to put those binoculars away quickly, before he spots them. Then I have to decide if I’ll forgive him. I probably will. It gets easier each time, and I have to admit, I don’t know what I would do without him. Even more than two years ago, Nick has become my caregiver. That is the crux of our relationship now. We are not husband and wife anymore, only caregiver and patient.
Also, I don’t want things to end up like last time. As much as I want to wrap my fingers around this woman’s pretty little neck, I don’t want to see her stabbed to death. I know what my husband is capable of now. I can’t let it happen again.
Unfortunately, when I tossed the binoculars onto the bed, they went all the way across the bed and rolled off the other side. So I can’t just grab them and throw them into the drawer. There isn’t much time either.
I push back on the wheels of my chair, backing away from the bed. The bedroom isn’t all that big, and it’s hard to maneuver. I end up having to do the equivalent of a five point turn to get out of the space between the bed and the wall. By the time I’ve freed myself, I can hear Nick’s footsteps on our stairs.