The problem of getting r.., p.25
The Problem of Getting Rich Quik ... Part One, page 25
part #1 of The problem of getting Rich Quik Series
‘Did you read it?’
‘Yes.’.
‘Liar!’
‘Okay I didn’t read it.’
‘You got married in Turks and Caicos,’ he said sitting on his knees and facing her.
‘So?’
‘Are you legally married Lily?’ he panicked.
‘In many ways I’ve been very stupid when it comes to Richard but did you think for one minute I’d let him do a Mick Jagger on me? I bloody well checked it was legal and it is.’
‘Phew!’ Dominic said. ‘Okay let’s see what he screwed you for on the pre-nup. Where would he keep it?’
‘I don’t know,’ Lily replied going back into the bed. ‘Try his study.’
She buried herself under the duvet feeling a massive wave of devastation and cried.
It was mid-morning when she managed to haul herself out of bed. She got up and put his towelling robe on, inhaling his scent and feeling an immense amount of pain before taking it off and kicking it around the room.
As she walked down the stairs she heard sounds, grunting and moans. She stopped and listened. It was coming from the study.
‘Dominic?’ she said and suddenly the sound stopped. ‘Who’ve you got in there? It better not be Rosana!’
‘Give me a moment,’ he quickly replied then she heard a few things drop.
Lily walked into the room and could see Dominic was hiding something.
‘What are you doing?’ she asked as Dominic closed down the new lap top.
Lily noticed there was a small pile of DVD’s in cases on the floor and some USB sticks.
‘I was watching some of his work,’ he quickly said, trying to eject a DVD from the laptop.
‘Let me see,’ she said. ‘He wanted me to watch his masterpieces ages ago.’
‘He wanted you to watch porn?’
‘What?’ She marched over to Dominic and grabbed a DVD out of his hand. There were dates and initials or names in Richard’s handwriting. ‘Porn?’
‘Starring Richard,’ Dominic quietly added.
‘You’re watching them?’ she asked.
Lily stood there stunned and pointed to the DVDs.
‘I thought-.’
‘Put that one back in and let me see,’ she said.
‘No,’ Dominic replied and bundled the remaining cases and sticks together. ‘That’s not a good idea.’
‘We’ll see.’
Lily stood there open mouthed as it only took a few moments before she realised her husband was filming someone he was having sex with.
‘Oh my god, you were right all along,’ she said, shocked at what she was seeing.
‘He’s very clever,’ said Dominic. ‘You don’t get to see much of him as he holds the camera. Mind you, he likes to film his dick a lot.’
‘He said he’d destroyed them,’ she said feeling sick.
‘There’s quite a few,’ Dominic eventually said as the pair of them watched what was going on. ‘Bloody hell Lily, he didn’t do that to you? I know you’ve got piles and all but that’s just-.’
‘Turn it off!’ said Lily. ‘Where did you find them?’
‘In there,’ Dominic said, pointing to the desk.
‘You broke into his desk?’
‘You knew it was locked?’ said Dominic amazed. ‘And it never occurred to you to have a look?’
‘He never lets me come in and it’s full of his crap. There’s nothing of interest.’
‘Well you’re wrong,’ he announced walking over to the desk, pulling out a drawer then pulling back some files to reveal a stash. ‘Your husband has certainly been a busy boy before he married you. There’s over fifty and they’re not all dedicated to the one woman.’
‘How did you manage to open it?’ she asked going closer to Dominic.
‘My mother not only taught me how to kiss-.’
‘You’re gross!’
‘But also how to break into things that people don’t want you to see,’ he smiled. ‘And she didn’t really teach me how to kiss, it was her friend.’
Shaking her head she peered inside his collection and pulled them all out.
‘He’s very organised,’ she said. ‘Names, times, dates and-.’
Doing a double take she noticed a few dates from a couple of months back. Immediately walking over to the laptop, she put the DVD in and played it, handing the case over to Dominic.
‘Must be a mistake,’ he said, half laughing and half confused.
In front of Lily’s eyes she could see another woman in the throes of passion with Richard. Then she noticed it, gleaming in front of her. As Richard reached out to touch the woman, his wedding ring was shining brightly at her.
‘Oh my god,’ she said, suddenly feeling sick. ‘He was screwing her while he was with me.’
Not being able to hold on for any longer she ran to the toilet and threw up. Her head down the bowl and her stomach churning, she felt like she was suffocating and tried to catch her breath.
‘You alright?’ Dominic asked, gently knocking the door.
‘No,’ she said in between heaving and crying. Eventually she stopped and collapsed on the toilet floor, eyes streaming and head throbbing. ‘That lying bastard has been screwing around.’
When she managed to get out of the toilet she went back into the study to find Dominic sitting on the floor.
‘How you feeling?’ he asked standing up.
‘I hate his lying guts,’ she said. ‘I want to see if there are any more?’
‘This isn’t a good idea.’
‘I need to know how faithful he wasn’t to me,’ she said, trying to hold back her angry tears.
‘I’ll put these away.’
‘No! I want them.’
‘They’re not yours.’
‘Who cares? I’m his wife!’
‘You shouldn’t stay here,’ he said. ‘Get your things and come home with me.’
‘I’m taking these,’ she said reaching down and grabbing them.
‘I’ve got a better idea,’ he said glancing around. ‘Let me make a copy of these now and you can pack your stuff.’
‘I hope you’re not going to get off on my husband screwing other women?’ she snapped. ‘What a lying fucking bastard!’
‘Yes, I know,’ Dominic calmly said. ‘Let me do this, you pack and we’ll leave it like we were never here.’
‘What difference will that make?’
‘It’ll give you the upper hand if he thinks you don’t know about these?’ he said holding them up. ‘You must be able to get something from him if he was dipping his wick.’
‘I don’t want anything from him. He’s bloody lied to me again and again,’ she said nausea building up. ‘I want to get out of here. But I need copies of those before I leave!’
Dominic looked at her and she could see the pain etched on his face which was probably from seeing her expression.
‘Which ones?’ he asked examining at the cases. ‘There are loads of them.’
‘I want them all. Download as much as you can,’ she quietly said before walking out of the room into the kitchen. ‘Just in case.’
‘What do you want?’ Lily asked the following morning as she stood by the front door while Rosana hovered on the doorstep. ‘Come to gloat?’
‘Are you alone? I need to get some of Richard’s things,’ replied Rosana avoiding eye contact.
‘Dominic’s sleeping upstairs. Anyway I thought you’d have your own key.’
‘I do but I thought it was best to knock,’ she said peering up the staircase.
‘Don’t worry he won’t come down.’
Lily noticed Rosana didn’t look as smug as usual. Her first reaction was to slam the door in her face but she knew it wouldn’t prove anything. She watched as Rosana headed for the study and Lily quietly stood by the door to see what she was taking. Some files and the DVDs, piling them into one of Richard’s cases. Lily stepped back quickly when she saw her turn around.
‘Is that all? What’s in there?’ Lily asked as Rosana walked towards her.
‘Just some things he needs which I forgot to take,’ she quickly replied.
‘When will you be serving me the divorce papers?’ she asked.
Rosana sighed and looked at her squarely in the eyes.
‘No matter what you think of me,’ Rosana began. ‘I knew he hadn’t changed. You must’ve known your relationship was a lie.’
‘He told me he loved me,’ Lily replied, feeling pissed off about the lecture.
‘He told you what you wanted to hear,’ she said. ‘You’ll be receiving a letter from his lawyer in the next few days.’
‘I see,’ Lily said gulping back the feeling of sick in her throat.
‘Richard has told me to tell you he’d like it if you didn’t make any contact with him, for the time being, but he wants you to stay here as long as you wish, before moving back into your old home.’
‘That’s very kind.’ Lily wanted to break down but knew she couldn’t. ‘Hopefully this will be the last time we ever see each other again unless Dominic invites you out. No, I’ve got that wrong. I think he called you a two faced cow so I guess I won’t see you again.’
Lily stared hard at Rosana who seemed to flinch at her comment.
‘How’s Dominic?’ she asked opening the door, once again looking up the stairs.
‘Why don’t you call him and find out?’ Lily replied. ‘He liked you and you should know how hard it is to meet people you can trust.’
‘I didn’t betray him.’
‘But you helped Richard betray me, didn’t you? And you know Dominic and I are close. What did you expect him to do? Congratulate you?’ said Lily, making sure she didn’t sound aggressive. ‘Did Richard give you a bonus for helping him?’
‘No.’
‘I expect we’ve ended up with the men we’re supposed to be with. When you speak to him next tell him I will always love him and I’m sorry he didn’t love me,’ Lily calmly said, pain piercing her body. ‘Shut the door on your way out.’
As soon as Rosana was out of earshot she ran into the study and saw what had been taken. She wanted to laugh and scream and cry. He was covering his tracks. Then she walked into the corridor and looked up at the landing to see Dominic staring down at her with a pained expression which hurt Lily more than anything else.
Chapter Twenty Two
‘Have you done everything?’ Dominic asked walking into Julian’s living room a few weeks later. ‘The old tart says you can stay here as long as you like,’ he continued, reaching for the remote. ‘But then again he’s in Thailand for two months so you’re effectively house sitting.’
‘Do you want to know what has been ticked off on my ‘to do’ list?’ Lily asked, perched at the dining table looking at her lap top.
‘Stop crying?’ he gently said. ‘Your eyes have been red for such a long time.’
‘It’s hard,’ she said choking back the tears. ‘Losing a husband is one thing, losing a lying, two timing son of bitch who said he loved me is another.’
‘Come on, impress me with your organisational skills,’ Dominic sarcastically said changing the subject, while turning to watch the news.
‘I’m going to get the flat back in a week when the tenants move out. Everything’s sorted and I’ll decorate it then put it on the market. I’ve changed all my contact details, told my mum about the split and she wasn’t impressed.’ She gulped hard for a moment trying not to splutter the next bit out. ‘And…’
‘What?’ Dominic quizzed.
‘I wrote a letter to Richard’s mother explaining that I left the house in good order, I’ve taken only my belongings and I sent her the keys, credit cards and my wedding ring,’ she then wiped the tears away.
‘That was good of you,’ he gently replied.
‘Richard won’t be able to track me down so I’m officially off the radar and the only person he’d know to contact is you and I know he wouldn’t dare.’
‘Let him fucking try!’ snapped Dominic.
‘Finally, I spoke to the bank manager about setting up a proper business.’
‘What did the old bastard say,’ laughed Dominic. ‘Bet he doesn’t like you any more now your account’s empty.’
‘Actually it’s not,’ she said, half smiling at her ingenuity. ‘I saved up money while I was with Richard so there’s cash in there for the time being. It’ll give me about six months to get back on my feet.’
‘He should be paying for you,’ Dominic said turning the volume off on the television. ‘That fucking bastard.’
‘I want him out of my life for good and the best way is that he doesn’t know where I am or how to get in contact with me. Then he can wait until I’m ready to divorce him. Anyway, he froze the joint bank account but not before I emptied it so I am in hiding for that also.’
‘Go girl!’
They did a high five immediately.
‘You know Rosana rang me a few times, wanting to talk.’ Dominic sighed deeply. ‘I really thought she was a good person.’
‘What did she have to say for herself?’
Lily felt her heart chill.
‘Don’t know. Didn’t speak to her,’ he said before turning the volume up on the television.
‘Dominic,’ Lily said, realising he was still pissed off. ‘I’m angry with her but she was just doing her job so if you like her then-.’
‘No,’ he sharply replied. ‘I don’t like people I can’t trust and she’s one of them especially as she’s more into Richard than anything else. And I’ve been seeing Monica again.’
‘Dominic!’
‘I know what you’re going to say but it’s only for sex so there’s no harm in it.’
‘That’s something I’d expect Richard to say,’ she replied getting up.
‘I’m fed up!’ he announced. ‘Fed up with my life, what I do day in and day out.’
‘I’m sorry if I’ve mucked up things for you,’ she said, feeling some of his bad mood was partly down to her.
‘Oh it’s not you, I’ve got a good job but I don’t feel I’m achieving much. And my flat is too small.’
‘No it’s not! It’s bigger than mine!’
‘I need a change Lily, a change of scene. I wish-’
‘Be careful what you wish for look what happened to me,’ she said, glancing at the screen.
‘At least you know what you want to do with the rest of your life.’
‘I’m not getting what I want, I’m settling for second best, as it won’t take away the fact I’d rather be with him.’
‘You’ll meet someone else,’ he said flippantly but that’s when Lily’s heart sank and she couldn’t speak for a moment.’
‘To be honest,’ she said after a while. ‘I only want Rich. Even now, even after him dumping me and screwing about, I still want him.’
The sharp pain returned that hadn’t been around for half an hour and she stared out of the window.
‘That’s because you don’t know any better’ Dominic got up and walked over to her.
‘I miss him so much.’
‘I know,’ Dominic said putting his arm around her.
‘But in the end of the day there’s nothing I can do. If he doesn’t love me, I can’t force it, can I?’
‘Just bury yourself in work,’ he said sympathetically. ‘Or find a new man.’
‘Never again! Are you going to still come and help me look for a new home?’ she asked. ‘I’m probably going to have to buy premises where I can live on top. I’ll end up in some burnt out ex dirty porn shop which would be pretty apt.’
‘I’ve been thinking,’ he said, half smiling and half unsure. ‘I can help you a bit, lend you some money. I’ve got some-.’
‘No Dom, I have to do this on my own,’ she replied glancing at him and squeezing his arm.
‘Listen, why don’t we do this together?’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Let’s combine our cash and get a business with a two or three bedroom flat above it. That way we can half the costs and-.’
‘We won’t have to be lonely?’
‘No stupid,’ he said, shaking his head. ‘I’d have an investment in the future, a stake in the business. Of course I’ll be a sleeping partner and should you wish to buy me out we’d discus it amicably.’
‘Would we?’ she laughed.
‘Yes,’ Dominic said standing up. ‘It would enable me to go back into acting and-.’
‘You want to be a thespian again?’ she said, realising what had been going through his mind. ‘After all you said about being unemployed?’
‘I can still do my voice over gig, take some classes and start going to auditions. In the meantime, I can help you set up shop and we can live together to make it all affordable. I do have some money put by that my granddad left plus I’d sell my flat, so I’d invest in it properly.’
Lily sat there, bewildered by his comment but amazed he’d thought it all through. She looked at him and realised he was being serious.
‘You’ve been taking the piss out of my stuffing jiffy bags since I told you about it. Now I’m planning a gift shop to go with it, I’d thought you wouldn’t want to invest in something that wouldn’t give you a fast and hard return.’
‘Ah,’ he said going bright red. ‘You don’t forget do you? And I was talking about the vibrator!’
‘What makes you think I want to live with someone again?’
‘You lived with Richard so how bad could I be?’ Dominic smirked. ‘Oh I know. I could actually be there.’
‘Very amusing Mr Sweet,’ Lily replied shaking her head. ‘Let me think about it and I’ll get back to you.’
As the pair walked into the shop down Chiswick High Road Lily knew, there and then, this was the place. The flat was two floors and large enough for both of them to live in without getting in the way of each other and the shop was smaller than she wanted but it was in a better condition. There was also the possibility to extend and the estate agent said the next door property might come up for sale in the next few years, if he was led to believe the recent gossip about immigration removing the current owner.
‘Is this more like it? It’s only fifteen minutes from your old place,’ Dominic asked running a finger along the counter and wiping the dust off his finger.
