A Winning Affair

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A Winning Affair

His phone was on the mantelpiece;it was now or never!

Saskia had a clear view of the rambling gardens, Alvin was strolling towards the pond, his gait long, his shoulders rounded, what she called his relaxed mode.

He was relaxed, how could he be. How could he?

Her hand hovered over his phone for a moment; indecision sharp on her tongue, the bitter taste of guilt. But she didn’t chastise herself for her indiscretion or her burning need to know.

At any cost really, she had to know.

After all, perhaps his attitude, his vagueness, his distance was nothing more than a phase. Perhaps he was innocent and it just her own dark imagination.

Perhaps he was innocent...

But, despite her misgivings, she knew. All the signs were there. She had to believe it, to uncover it, to find that all the fault lay with him. To absolve herself.

She punched in his pin code and scrolled to WhatsApp. Nothing incriminating. Clean.

Her heart sank.

“My kids, I can’t lose Justin and Josh…”

She tried Messenger, SMSs, and then she flicked through his calls. Nothing.

It looked like the man was a saint.

On an off chance she spun through his emails, but she knew that he cleared them daily. It was an off chance...and there it was, she knew what it was just by looking at it.

Confirmation of a reservation from a hotel in the city, a very upmarket hotel in the city. Innocuous enough, if it wasn’t billed for two hours in the middle of a week day.

Saskia, gripped the phone to her heart. Tears of gratitude, sprung unwittingly.

She drew in a deep, shaky audible breath and turned to watch him as he ambled back to the house. The sun slipped from behind the clouds while she was poaching. He looked up at the window, as if aware of her spying. His face, the subtle crinkle lines at the side of his eyes, the strong jaw; all highlighted in the slanting rays, she felt a pang of whimsical regret.

When he stepped in he stilled.

“What?”

But he already knew.

“You made the rule Alvin, remember, no secrets. None. No matter what we did, you said, it was our primary gift to each other. Not my rule, yours!”

He simply stared at her, no excuses crossed his lips. Guilt clear in his eyes.

She crossed the floor, he held up his hands as if to ward her off, but she simply collected her bag and phone from the table beside him.

“I’ll send for my things.” She whispered, the phone already at her ear.

She had her freedom.


Greg opened the door for her. He had the car a few blocks up from her house.

My house she mused, as she clambered into the passenger seat.

“So, you told him, right?” He was breathing hard. Anticipation riling his normally calm demeanor. “You told him about us, about me?”

“Of course not!” She grinned, “let’s just say that Alvin and I are history, my love. It’s, oh, so over and the way things worked out, it looks like I might just get to keep my kids.”

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