Chapter 3

I was caught off guard by Eric's sudden confrontation. What on earth was Eric so upset about?

I used to behave like a madwoman, doing everything I could to find proof of his affairs, combing through the countless flirtatious messages on his phone, attempting to cut off every avenue through which he could come into contact with other women.

At the time, he found me utterly repulsive. He berated me for being unreasonable and called me a lunatic. Wasn't this what he wanted?

Eric was still dissatisfied, convinced that I was giving him an attitude.

All of a sudden, I felt drained. I took a deep breath, broke free from Eric's hold, and responded apathetically, "I'm not giving you an attitude. I'm just tired, and I want to go back and get some rest."

After taking a couple of steps, something hit me, and I turned back around. "I've signed the divorce agreement, Eric. I've left your copy exactly where it was. If you're free tomorrow, let's go to the courthouse and finalize the divorce."

As soon as the words rolled off my tongue, the anger on Eric's face froze for a moment.

The very next second, he sneered. "Why are you pretending to be magnanimous all of a sudden? You're still pissed off, aren't you? However, let me make one thing clear—divorce isn't a game.

"Once you cool off and regret it, even if you come crawling back to me, don't expect me to take you in. My patience has its limits."

With that, he looked at me calmly.

I remembered how, when we had first gotten married, I used to threaten Eric with divorce all the time. In the end, after he dragged me to the courthouse, I was the one who ended up in tears, begging him to take me home.

I'd been such a fool. Eric didn't love me. Divorce was a reward, not a punishment for him.

"Ok," I responded to acknowledge I had heard him and quietly returned to the guest room.

The master bedroom was on the second floor, while most of the guest rooms were on the third floor.

I wanted to stay out of each other's hair.

I had no idea what had gotten into Eric tonight. He had told me that he'd take the master bedroom, but he led Sabrina into the guest room right next to mine.

Sabrina's giggles, hushed sweet nothings, gasps, and moans drifted into my ears in fits and starts.

I was pregnant and an exceptionally light sleeper to begin with. I was kept awake the entire night by the noise.

Strangely enough, when I heard those sounds now, my heart no longer ached. I was simply annoyed by the disturbance.

I belatedly realized that I no longer loved Eric.

…

While we were having breakfast the following morning, Eric took one look at the dark circles under my eyes and smirked triumphantly. "Well? A night without sleep ought to have cleared your head. Are you still going to the courthouse to file for divorce?"

I looked up from my phone and nodded. "Yeah, I am. The driver's already waiting outside. I made an appointment for 9:00 am. We can leave as soon as you finish breakfast.

"It won't take much of your time—about 20 minutes tops. By the way, I haven't informed Mrs. Grant. Her health isn't the best, and I'm afraid she won't be able to handle it all at once. Give it some time and break it to her when the moment's right."

Eric chuckled dryly, his voice laced with venom. "You sure switch gears fast; you're already calling her 'Mrs. Grant." How ungrateful… Sylvia Wright, if my mom hadn't threatened to take her own life back then, I wouldn't have spared you a second glance, let alone married you!"

My knuckles turned white, but I didn't want to pick a fight, so I kept my head down and remained quiet.

My reaction, or lack thereof, made Eric feel as though he'd punched a pile of cotton. It only fueled his inexplicable anger.

He ditched his breakfast and sprang to his feet. "Fine. Aren't you in such a rush to get divorced? Let's go!"

Silence stretched across the back seat for a moment.

Eric abruptly turned around and jeered. "Too bad Sabrina is still asleep and couldn't join us. If not, after finalizing our divorce, I could've proposed to her right then and there. She's been with me for so many years; it's high time I gave her a place in my life."

I could tell he was deliberately attempting to get a reaction out of me, so I refused to take the bait. In fact, I turned to him and asked, "Since we're getting divorced, be honest with me, Eric, why have you hated me so much all these years?"