The next day, Evan came back, dark circles under his eyes making it clear he hadn’t slept all night.
Rubbing his temples, he started with a command.
“Claire, I’ve looked into what happened yesterday. Here’s the plan–you’ll just have to put
with the homewrecker label for now.“.
up
I stared at him silently, and he avoided my gaze, adding, “Anne isn’t married yet. Her reputation can’t be tarnished.”
I had long known he would defend Anne unconditionally, but hearing it still struck me as
absurd.
“And what about my reputation? Does it not matter? Am I just supposed to accept the online abuse and insults?”
Evan, completely unashamed, acted as though it wasn’t a big deal.
“Well, you’re already married to me. Your reputation doesn’t matter as much anymore. Besides, isn’t your job all about dealing with this kind of stuff? If it really affects your work and you get fired, I can afford to take care of you.”
I worked as an on–air news analyst for a media company, and facing public scrutiny was an occupational hazard, but that was part of my professional life, not my personal one.
He conflated the two as if my ability to handle criticism made me deserving of the abuse.
As my expression grew colder, he started to panic. His tone softened, and he raised his hand as though making a solemn vow.
“I swear, after this, I’ll cut off all contact with Anne,
His empty promises might have sounded convincing–to himself, at least.
After a moment of silence, I let out a bitter laugh.
“Fine. I’ll clear her name. After all, I’m a public figure, aren’t?”
