Life is Sweet by Elizabeth Bass

she’s an asset,” Erin said, finishing off her glass of wine as if she were swallowing down the last sip of bitterness. “She’s brilliant and beautiful. Probably talented in all sorts of ways.”
    â€œSo? You’re beautiful, too,” Becca said. “And smart.”
    Erin buried her head in her hands. “I wasn’t smart enough not to marry some guy who was going to run off with the first coworker who smiled at him. I wasn’t smart enough to try to make something of my life so I wouldn’t feel so lost now.”
    â€œEnough with the self-loathing,” Pam said. “ You’re not the problem—it’s what Bob’s up to that’s causing trouble. We need to do a house search for serious evidence. Do you know his passwords?”
    Becca shook her head. “No, no. You can’t go snooping like that.”
    Pam blinked at her. “How would you do it?”
    â€œI wouldn’t snoop at all. It’s not right. How would you feel if someone dug through all your files and stuff? If Bob hasn’t done anything and then he finds out that Erin’s been spying on him, she’s going to come off as a paranoid nut wife.”
    â€œWell, if you’re going to be all ethical . . .” Pam took a sip of wine and turned back to Erin. “Is Nicole married?”
    Erin shrugged. “I can’t remember.”
    â€œWe should find that out, at least,” Pam said.
    Becca shook her head. “The other woman—and we don’t even know if she is that, in the lurid sense—doesn’t matter. Neither does her marital status. The person who matters to Erin is Bob, because he is married.”
    Erin bit her lip, considering. “No, I don’t think that matters so much. At least, not to him.”
    Becca planted her hands on her hips. “Why wouldn’t it matter that Bob swore a vow to love you till death do you part?”
    â€œBecause he made that exact same vow to someone before me.” Erin smiled miserably. “And then I came along.”

Chapter 6
    Nicole arrived home late the next Friday night for a weekend visit and proceeded to collapse. She slept in Saturday morning while Matthew and Olivia worked like elves in the kitchen, trying not to make too much noise. Olivia insisted that her mother’s homecoming, however temporary, called for waffles. Matthew was pretty sure the waffles would be a self-serving gesture. He cut up a fruit salad.
    When Nicole stumbled into the kitchen and saw them, she smiled. “You don’t know how good it is not to be heading down to a crappy breakfast buffet.”
    Olivia left her waffle station long enough to give her mom a hug. “I’d love to live in a hotel. Like Eloise.”
    â€œEloise wasn’t at a Best Western,” Nicole said. Matthew handed her a cup of coffee and she took a seat at the breakfast table. “What’s been going on around here?”
    Olivia breathlessly cataloged the events of the past weeks, culminating in the story about giving a cupcake to the man she thought was homeless—“Only he wasn’t, he just looked it”—and standing up to Leesburg’s finest on his behalf. “And now the cake lady says I can ride Harvey any time I want. Harvey’s her horse.”
    The silence that followed bristled with Nicole’s we-are-not-pleased vibes.
    â€œI’ve got an idea for my birthday,” Olivia said. “I could have a horse party.”
    â€œIt’s a little late for that, isn’t it? I mean, that’s a lot to arrange.” Nicole flicked a glance at Matthew. “For one thing, we’d need to come up with twelve horses in two weeks.”
    â€œI bet Becca could help,” Olivia said.
    Nicole blinked. “Becca?”
    â€œThe cake lady,” Matthew and Olivia explained in unison.
    â€œOh right.” Nicole stared thoughtfully at her empty plate. “Well . . . I’ll