The Day Silence Spoke novel Chapter 4

Yesenia’s eyes slid over to Latisha, lingering on the faint marks on her neck. She forced a bright, brittle smile. “How else am I supposed to find you?”

Clifford turned to Latisha. “Go on inside. Time for work.”-

Latisha nodded and walked past Yesenia into the café. It was the only place that had been willing to hire her.

The moment she was gone, Yesenia looped her arm through Clifford’s, her voice dropping to a seductive purr. “Are you still mad at me?”

“Get in the car.”

She clung to him, and he didn’t push her away. Before getting into the passenger seat, Yesenia pulled a small bottle of disinfectant spray from her purse. She spritzed it liberally all over the seat where Latisha had just been sitting.

“Just need to sanitize,” she said, looking up at him with a dazzling smile. She found the idea of sharing a space with Latisha distasteful.

Clifford watched her, his expression unreadable, and said nothing. He allowed it.

Even with Latisha just feet away, watching through the glass door of the café.

She saw it all. She saw his indulgence, his affection for Yesenia. The one who is truly loved can get away with anything. Clifford loved Yesenia, so no matter how unreasonable she was, no matter how outrageous her actions, he saw them as perfectly justified.

Even when she humiliated his wife right in front of him.

Once she was satisfied, Yesenia slipped into the car. She fluffed her hair and took Clifford’s hand. “Alright, why the long face? I promise I won’t bring up the divorce again, okay?”

Clifford doted on her, but the one thing that made him turn on her instantly was any mention of divorcing the mute. He always insisted he didn’t love her, that he only felt a sense of duty, a promise made to his grandfather. But it still infuriated Yesenia.

She wanted to be his one and only, not some dirty little secret. Everyone said she was the apple of Clifford’s eye, that he’d given her everything but a ring. Only she knew the truth. If he truly loved her, he wouldn’t let her suffer this humiliation. A promise? The old man had been dead for three years. What did it matter anymore?

Yesenia tilted her head, pretending to think. “My Ferrari is getting old. I’d like a new Maserati.”

A faint smile touched his lips. “Done.”

“And you’re not to go back to that mute for a month.”

“Fine.”

A triumphant smile spread across her face. “Good. Now, let’s get to work.”

Latisha watched the car drive away before turning back inside. The cleaning cloth in her hand was twisted into a tight, wrinkled knot. She smoothed it out on the counter, as if trying to soothe her own constricted heart.

“You’re not even angry about that?”