He paused, and I heard him take a breath like he was steadying himself.
“I have photos from last Wednesday. I was working late on a project budget analysis that was due Thursday morning, and I saw them leaving together around seven. Levi said something to her that made her laugh, and the way she looked at him… it just felt wrong. So I followed them.”
My hand tightened around the phone.
“Where did they go?”
“Kimpton Hotel in Old Town. They walked in together. I waited in my car for a while thinking maybe it was some kind of work meeting, maybe I was being paranoid. But they didn’t come out. Not for hours. So I took some photos just to have proof if it turned out to be what I thought it was. They finally left around ten-thirty. Separate cars, but I saw him kiss her in the parking garage before they drove away.”
I closed my eyes, feeling something settle in my chest. Not surprise. Not shock. Just the weight of confirmation.
“Can you send them to me?”
“Already done.”
My phone buzzed with incoming images. I opened the first photo and felt my breath catch despite already knowing what I was going to see. Levi and Sienna entering the hotel lobby together. His hand on her lower back, not casual, not professional, but possessive and intimate. Time stamp: 7:18 p.m. Her head tilted toward him, smiling at something he’d just said. Second photo: them leaving at 10:33 p.m. Her hair messier than it had been going in. His tie gone. Both of them looking satisfied and relaxed, like they had spent the evening doing exactly what I knew they had. Third photo: Levi kissing her in the parking garage. Not a peck. Not ambiguous. A real kiss. His hand cupping her face. Her body pressed against his. I stared at the photos for a long time, zooming in on details I did not need to see but couldn’t seem to look away from. The way she touched his chest. The way he smiled at her. That real, genuine smile I hadn’t seen directed at me in months.
“Hazel? You still there?”
“Yeah,” I said. My voice sounded steadier than I expected. “I’m here.”
“I’m really sorry. I know seeing those can’t be easy.”
“Actually, it’s easier than you’d think. Because now I’m not crazy. Now I’m not the paranoid wife who couldn’t handle her husband talking to a colleague. Now I have proof.”
“What are you going to do?”
I looked at the photos again, feeling something cold and crystalline settle in my chest. Not heartbreak. That had happened weeks ago, maybe months ago if I was being honest. This was something else. Clarity. Purpose. The kind of focused determination that comes when you stop questioning yourself and start acting.
“I’m filing for divorce tomorrow,” I said. “This morning, actually, since it’s already past midnight.”
There was silence on the other end, then Marcus said quietly:
“Good. He’s an idiot. You deserve so much better than this.”
“I know I do.”
