Chapter 2

Third POV

Ivana couldn't believe what she just heard. Did her husband just say this to her? 

“I warned you to stay away from my presence. I'm so ashamed to have people call you my wife. I hate that you make me feel like I married a man because I think I did.” 

His face turned stone cold and stared at her with terror. “You thought you could manipulate me into smiling at you by giving me a piece of paper?” 

“That paper has something important! That was…” She tried to defend, but he cut her short. 

“I'm tired of you, your voice, everything about you sickens me. Just go please.” He barked at her. 

Her heart fell upon hearing these words of his. He always lashes out at her like that, but that was the peak of it. His words were more harsh and piercing this time. 

She couldn’t help with the tears that rolled down her cheeks. “Is this how you really feel about me? You know how much I've wanted to have a baby for you, we tried everything.” She said to him. 

It was so painful that she had to endure all these. The marriage was an arranged marriage between her family and Rowley’s family to strengthen their business bond since her dad was the Minister of Tourism. Both families have been working hand in hand in the business world perfectly but no one cares about the affair of their only daughter, even when she's being treated badly in her marriage. 

Ivana had to endure in silence because no one listened any time she wanted to complain about his maltreatment. 

In fact, Rowley's true love was her divorced stepmom, Alice, a divorce lawyer and this was a big red flag coupled with how young and beautiful she is, to be friends with her husband.

“You make it clearer everyday that you never wanted me. I've tried my best to be the best wife to you. I don't take roles that involve kissing or even being sensual with any man so you can never feel I'm cheating on you, but you still treat me this way. Why can't you just love me right?” 

“You know what? Maybe you're right. I don't love you and I never will. I think it's time to stop allowing you to deceive yourself.” Rowley said softly. 

“What does that mean?” 

Without saying any more words, he picked up the files on the table which he had planned on returning home to give to Ivana. “Here, these are for you, prepared by Alice. She's taking over from you.” He muttered with a cold voice and a face without emotions that Ivana couldn't even guess what it's about until she read it. 

“What is the meaning of this?” Ivana widened her eyes, taking a deeper look at the files, then back at Rowley.

“We are done, Ivana.”

A quick laugh left her lips. “Are you serious? Tell me this is a dumb joke.” 

“I said I am done.” He said, this time more confident. She was still in disbelief as tears rained down her eyes in droplets, she couldn't get hold of them again. 

“I want nothing to do with you anymore.” He said. “And there's no alimony for you, you can't reap where you didn't sow.” 

This was his final decision and no matter what Ivana did to make him change his mind, he didn't. He didn't even care about this affecting his business, perhaps he had achieved what he wanted or hated Ivana so much that he didn't mind if he lost deals. 

She even went down on her knees, begging as she grabbed Rowley's legs but he moved away from her as though she's dirt. 

“I've already made up my mind. I don't want you. There's nothing you can do to change that. All you have to do is sign the papers and leave my life!” He yelled at you. 

“I want to have children and hopefully, I'll meet someone that can give me what I want because you have used three years to prove that you can't!”

Ivana had cried her eyes out before him, but it didn't move him. This was the worst kind of pain she ever felt. The pain of rejection. 

When she saw that crying and begging was pointless, she stood up, wiped her tears and signed the papers, after which, she left. 

She hid her face from the staff in the house. She was a star and everything that happened to her always made the news. No matter what happened, she didn't want to be perceived as weak by the outside world. 

It was obvious that soon, the news of their separation will be out everywhere, it doesn't matter who will spread it or how fast it will be announced.

She went straight to her car, not even letting the driver open up for her. She opened for herself and entered. The driver, on seeing her, knew that there was something wrong. He saw through her physical composure.  

“What's wrong ma'am?” He asked her. “Please, I don't have the strength to answer any questions. Just drive.” She said to him and he heeded. 

She acted in enough heartbreak movies, but never thought it would one day happen to her. Here, she was, facing real heartbreak and it felt like a dream. She wished she could wake up and everything would go back to normal. This wasn't a dream however, neither was a movie. It was reality. 

She felt like she was drowning in a sea of despair, clinging to the fragile thread of denial.

“This can't be real,” she whispered to herself, desperate to wake up from the nightmare. But the cold, harsh truth was seeping in, suffocating her usual optimism. For the first time, she felt truly hopeless, like she was staring into an abyss with no safety net to catch her fall.