3: 3
3
I shot to my feet.
"You'd better tell me exactly what you saw!"
"When, and where?"
"Which strange man's car did Katherine get into?"
Howard realized he'd said too much.
He rushed to laugh it off.
"Come on, Asher, it was late that night, pitch dark, I couldn't see clearly."
"Or maybe I got it wrong."
"If you really want to know, go ask your wife."
I practically kicked the bedroom door open.
Katherine had just showered. She stood in her pajamas, staring blankly at the mirror.
She heard me come in but didn't turn around.
"Let's not fight tonight, I'm exhausted."
"Save it for another day."
Still seething, I grabbed her by the wrist.
"Did you get into some strange man's car?"
That finally moved her a little. She turned to look at me.
"What are you talking about?"
"No wonder you asked me earlier where the money for your parents' treatment came from."
"So that's it. You've been out there running around with another man!"
Katherine let out a cold laugh and flung my hand off.
"Asher, is that really what you think of me?"
"Even if I wanted another man, what man would ever look twice at a woman as plain and poor as me?"
"I don't even own one decent outfit."
"And I've got none of the looks your ex Tabitha has."
"What would they be after?"
I paused, and my frown eased.
She had a point.
Wasn't I only so certain she'd never leave me
that I dared bring Tabitha home to celebrate her birthday, right under her nose?
"Good, then it's nothing."
I breathed out.
"I just worry too much when it comes to you."
"From now on, if you need to spend money, tell me right away. Since you're so generous and understanding about all this."
"And I won't hold grudges against you anymore either."
I thought about it, then pulled out a bank card and held it out to her.
But she wouldn't take it.
"I don't need money anymore."
"I already asked my boss for two months' salary in advance and paid my parents' medical bills."
"Asher, keep your money."
Katherine pulled the covers over herself and turned her back to me to sleep.
Watching her all obedient and sensible again, I felt the corner of my mouth lift.
There she was. The Katherine I knew.
I went back out to the living room.
And picked the game back up with Tabitha.
We got pretty into it. Around one in the morning, we woke Katherine.
She stood in the doorway in her pajamas, stomach growling.
"Asher, is there anything left to eat?"
I shrugged.
And pointed at the trash can.
"It's all in there."
"We're both full. Didn't think you'd come home tonight."
Tabitha looked up from her phone screen, her pout playful.
"You want some too? Shame you're too late, it's all been thrown out."
"It's Asher's fault. I told him not to buy so much, but he insisted, and now look, all that waste."
Katherine looked up, confusion in her eyes.
"If you couldn't finish it, you could've saved it."
She'd always been frugal by habit.
Seeing all that barely touched food lying in the trash right now, it had to be killing her inside.
Tabitha shrugged.
"I've hated leftovers since I was a kid. Doesn't matter how expensive it is. Once it's leftover, I wouldn't touch it, not even if you fed it to a dog."
"Asher knows that about me, so it all had to go in the trash."
Katherine turned to look at me.
Her eyes were full of scrutiny, and disappointment.
I sighed, picked up the dog bowl beside me.
Cut a clean piece of cake from the trash can with the cake knife, and dropped it into the bowl.
"Make do with a little."
"If it weren't for Tabitha's birthday, you'd never get to taste fondant cake this good."
Katherine's body went rigid and tense, and still she stared me down.
She'd always held herself above things.
She'd starve before she'd take charity handed down to her.
Back in school, it was because the others mocked her for being an orphan nobody wanted.
She'd rather go collect plastic bottles to sell after class.
Scraping together her own tuition, bit by bit.
Than accept aid for poor students.
So a feeding this humiliating, right now.
There was no way she'd eat it.
Seeing how angry she was, I'll admit it gave me a quiet thrill.
All I wanted was to needle her a little this way.
Who told her to get in a strange man's car without my say-so.
And let my friend see it, making me lose face.
This was just a small punishment for her.
The moment she admitted she was wrong,
I'd take back the punishment and we'd let the whole thing go.
But I never expected Katherine to actually reach out and take it.
"Fine, you want me to eat it."
"Asher, I'll eat every bite like a good girl."
She shoved it into her mouth, big mouthful after big mouthful.
Wolfing it down.
Beside her, Tabitha saw how ridiculous she looked and broke into giggles.
"Slow down, sweetheart."
"Look at you, like you're some starved ghost reborn."
"Has Asher never fed you enough?"
"A trashy little cake fished out of the garbage and you eat like this. Really... never seen anything of the world."
But I didn't sneer and laugh along the way I usually would.
I just watched Katherine, a little thrown.
And in my chest, a bad feeling stirred.
Until Katherine quietly finished the last bite of cake.
She turned her head and glanced at the three Chanel bags on the coffee table.
"These few. How much did they cost?"
