0003: SUMMER GUEST 

JUNE’S POV

The drive home that morning felt heavier than usual. My little sedan seemed to drag itself forward, carrying not only me but the mess of what I had done. Luca’s touch still clung to my skin, a heat I could not wash off, and the thought of stepping into Franklin’s house, my husband’s house, made my stomach twist with knots.

I barely cut the engine before I saw him waiting at the door. Arms crossed, face drawn and pale. Not smug, not casual like I had half expected. He looked wrecked. Like he had not closed his eyes once all night.

The second I walked in, his voice cracked. “June… wait. Please. Do not shut me out. I need to explain.”

I froze, my purse still on my shoulder. The audacity of him. “Explain? What is there to explain, Franklin? I fucking saw you.” My voice shook, not from fear but from the kind of disbelief that cuts deeper than rage.

He reached for me, hands trembling. “It was a mistake. God, June, it was the first time. I swear on everything, I have never touched another woman until last night. I lost my head and Karen, she…” His words fell apart. “It was the first and the last. Please believe me.”

My vision blurred. All the pent up anger dissolved into tears and spilled before I could hold them back. My voice came sharp, almost vicious. “Do you think I am stupid? You want me to believe that after twenty years, this was the only time you have been with another woman other than me? Tell me the truth, Franklin. How many were there? And how long?”

He shook his head wildly, clearly broken. “No one else. Just her. Just that night. Please, June, do not throw away twenty years. Think of our kids, think of family. I will fire her. I will end it. I will do whatever you want, only do not leave me. Do not break us.”

“Break us?” I whispered, stunned. “So now it is on me?” I turned to walk away but he caught me. The man I had once thought untouchable, the charming CEO who lit up every room and closed deals no matter how difficult, was kneeling in front of me. His eyes red, hands shaking as they reached for mine.

And me? I felt nothing. Not fury, not sorrow. Just emptiness. Because I already knew. I did not care anymore. But I could not condemn him, not after what I had done. Not after Luca’s lips branded my skin on his bed last night. Not after I gave myself to someone the same age as our son, just like he did with Karen.

Franklin sobbed, choking on his own voice. “Give me another chance. I will change, I will prove it to you. Please. Do not end us.”

Our children’s faces flickered in my mind. Adrian, Marlene. Their laughter, their expectations of us as their parents. The beautiful bond of family we had built and how much a divorce at this point would hurt and tear it all apart.

I swallowed and forced myself to look at him in the eyes, the same one that used to make me weak around the knee. “I am not going to ask for a divorce but make no mistake. This is not for you,” I said, barely more than a whisper. “I do not care if you change or fire Karen. I do not even know if I love you anymore. But for Adrian and Marlene, I will give this family one more chance.”

Relief washed over him. He clutched my hands like a drowning man grabbing a rope. “Thank you, June. Thank you. I will prove it, I swear.”

But inside, I already knew. I was not saving Franklin. I was protecting my children. The love I once had for him had died, and nothing he promised would raise it from the grave where it was already buried last night.

The weeks slipped past faster than I expected. Adrian and Marlene were coming home for summer break today, and I had been counting the hours. I wanted noise in the house again, laughter, someone other than Franklin to talk to without forcing myself.

My heart ached for them, to hold them, to pretend for a little while that everything was fine. I had baked their favorite snacks, fussed over dinner, changed their sheets. Tried to smile while something heavy churned inside me.

By seven I was on the front porch, hands knotted in front of me, eyes on the driveway. The crunch of tires on gravel jolted me, made my pulse jump with excitement. The car rolled to a stop and Adrian stepped out first. Taller than I remember, his shoulders broader, his physique starting to resemble Franklin’s, but the wide smile on his face was entirely mine.

“Mom, Dad!” Marlene followed, her blonde curls bouncing, her grin lighting up her whole face when she noticed us standing there. My chest ached when I pulled them both into my arms. God, they had grown. Or maybe I had aged. Hard to tell. All I knew was I had them back in my arms, and for a moment that was enough.

Then another door opened. Someone else climbed out. My breath caught. Those eyes. Blue, steady, and impossible. Luca. He was standing right there on my porch like the earth had tilted beneath us.

I told myself I was mistaken, that stress had finally scrambled me, but no. He was real. He was here and staring right  at me in the face like Karma.

Adrian’s grin was wide as he pulled him close and threw an arm around his shoulder. “Mom!Dad! This is Luca, my best friend. He’ll be staying with us this summer.”