Gemotions

The dog-eared paperback lay open on the bedside table. The story followed a character named "Isabelle," a woman consumed by the pursuit of material wealth. The parallels to his wife were obvious, though embellished. Her shopping habits, her expensive tastes, her constant craving for more – all were laid bare.

He felt a deep discomfort, a sense of being both exposed and betrayed. The idea of others reading about her, laughing at her, filled him with a possessive rage. He wanted to conceal it, to bury it. He knew he should confront her, or his wife’s novelistic doppleganger, but the thought of sharing his discovery with the world filled him with reluctance.

Instead, he hid the book under the bed, the secret hers, for the moment.