LOGINDiana came back to the room, her plan for a walk shot to hell, and right now the envelope her father had handed her felt like it was burning her hands.That had to be a sign to do exactly that—burn it without opening it, because whatever was inside couldn't be good, and she was done with problems.The second she reached the room, she leaned back against the door and closed her eyes."Some birthday I'm having, baby," she murmured out loud, rubbing her flat stomach. She looked at the envelope and shook her head. "No. I'm not opening it. They just want to scare me."The envelope had her husband's name written on it and was sealed, but why had her father handed it to her instead of Alexander?Most likely her father wanted her to know too, and he didn't care whether she found out before or after her husband did.What could possibly be in there that was supposed to make Alexander leave her?Diana started laughing, almost hysterically.Her husband, at this point, after his reaction to findin
When Alexander left, Diana ate breakfast alone and decided to get dressed and go out for a while so she wouldn't spend the whole time thinking about what had happened.Later she'd go up and get ready for that night's event, where her husband would be given the Businessman of the Year award.After that... She didn't want to think about after. He'd told her to trust him, and she'd try, even though her heart was worn out from taking so many hits.She had to give him time to process it all, but she felt like it would always hang over their marriage like a dead weight.She left the room and headed down to the front desk.She didn't know where she'd go, but she needed to clear her head a little.She was handing over the room key at the desk, so her husband could get in if she was out longer than expected, when she ran into the last person she wanted to see."Hello, sweetheart, I didn't expect to run into you here." Her father's voice rang out behind her.Could anything else possibly go wron
Diana felt the soul drain right out of her body when she heard her husband's words.She couldn't sleep, but she pretended to, just so she wouldn't have to keep talking.When he got out of bed in that strange, furtive way, she couldn't help but follow him.She knew it was wrong, that eavesdropping wasn't something she should be doing.But finding out what her husband really thought was her punishment for going after him to figure out what he was up to.And to think she'd believed every word when he told her he was in love with her.His declaration of love, the I-love-yous he'd whispered to her again and again while they made love.Because what happened that night hadn't been just sex to her. She'd believed it, believed that night was the start of a long love story.She was about to step away from the door when he came out and caught her."Diana." Her husband gasped her name in surprise. "What are you doing here? Were you... listening?"She recovered quickly and tried to cover."No, I w
"Where are you going at this hour?" Alexander asked when she started getting ready, packing her things into her bag.She needed to get out of there, needed to stop looking at him, because the way he was looking at her was tearing her apart."I don't know, but I have to get out of here. I'll go to the front desk and ask for another room. You need time, and so do I."Alexander picked up the ring he'd left on the table and held it out to her."Not everything gets solved this way. Wanting to think things through is one thing—running away is something else entirely. Because that's exactly what you're doing." Alexander took her hand and slid the ring back onto her finger. "Try to understand, I still can't wrap my head around it. Years ago, I was in a place like that once…""But you can't stand the idea that your wife did it." Diana looked him in the eye. She wasn't nervous anymore; she didn't even know how she felt.It was some mix of disappointment and helplessness.Maybe he was right, may
Diana felt Alexander's arm slide away, slowly, until it wasn't around her anymore.The shift of the mattress told her he'd rolled onto his back.She turned to look at him, and he covered his eyes with his hand.“Aren't you going to say anything?” he murmured.She would have preferred him to start ranting rather than this silence, the kind that promised nothing good.All the calm she'd felt while telling him had drained away, because the man wasn't saying a single word.“Can you—define what you mean by dancing?” This time it was her turn to go quiet. “No, actually, don't tell me. Although if it was ballet you were dancing and I'm misreading this the way I always do, then yes, tell me.”Diana sat up in bed and pressed her back against the wall.“I'm not going to lie to you. It was hard for me, having to put myself on display and pretend I liked doing it, but all I ever did was dance,” she said, and when her husband's silence seemed to be asking her to keep going, she continued. “Nearly
"Alexander, don't fall asleep," she told her husband.Diana was curled against his bare chest, tracing her fingers over his stomach."Woman, you're insatiable. Give me half an hour to recover," he grumbled, but he grabbed her hand and guided it down to his cock. "If you can bring it back to life, it's yours."She laughed and kissed his chest."That's not it. I'm exhausted—if it comes back to life, I'm the one you'll kill—but I don't want you falling asleep, because I need to tell you something."The moment had come, and it might not have been the best one, but she didn't want to let more time slip by. She was scared, but she had to trust in the love he felt for her. The truth would set her free from all of it, and they'd be fine.Alexander turned onto his side, still holding her, and tipped her chin up to lift her face to his."What's worrying you?""How you'll react when I tell you," she admitted. "It's not easy to swallow.""I've survived your cooking, honey. I think that's prepared







