y Wol

brooding presence in our crumbling home, as if my words hadn't sliced through the

s started. Not from

ced with venom, scraped against my raw nerves. "Are you out of your mind?

"He cheated on me, Mom. And I

ut a husband like Calvin? Never! If you divorce him, I swear to God, Audrey, I

ineless acquiescence. "Your mother's right, sweetheart. T

didn' t intervene. He didn't defend me. He simply let my parents tear me apart,

he back of Calvin's sleek black car. He'd insisted on driving us home, and Kaliyah, ever the pragmatist, had accepted t

rents like mine. They wouldn't have just 'left it.' They would have made my life

ious interior design firm I'd built from scratch. It was never enough. Only Calvin, his wealth, his status, had ever see

ting bitter. "Before the wedding. He said he' d found his soulm

. "And what a g

I tried to cuddle close, he flinched. "Audrey," he'd said, his voice flat. "You've gained weight. You're not as... radiant as you used to be. It's not at

he car's warmth. The air conditioning was

car over to the curb, concern etched onto his features. He reached back,

touch, to believe in the illusion of care. But the new Audrey, the one

s eyes brimming with what looked like tears. "Audrey, you are my everything. I can't live without you. I will cherish

id you really think I'd be with just one woman, when the world is at my feet? You're bori

ly, breaking contact. "I'm

ring wheel. A flicker of something, disappointment maybe, crossed

day," he said, his voice softer, almost nosta

u remember that? Funny, I don't remember you remembering much el

the wheel, his knuckles white. He glanced in the rearview mirror, hi

the console. He glanced at the screen, and

er. "What is it, Brea? I'm busy.

ie to me, Calvin! I know you're with Audrey! I saw you! How dare you leave me alone after what we've been through? Are

hilling echo of my own lost child. He was putting her through IVF. He

ries, her accusations painting a pi

shaking with rage. "You still want her! I saw the way you looked

fully constructed facade of the devoted husband, crumbling under the weight of his own creation. The s

run and never look back. He had built his bed, and now he had to lie in it. But her wo