CHAPTER 4

Frank was taken aback. Hearing those words from my mouth wasn’t something he’d anticipated. He glanced down at the papers in his hands—yes, they were a divorce petition and my resignation notice.

He glared at me and demanded, "You’re throwing a tantrum over what happened a while ago. That’s why you’re giving me these papers?"

I shook my head. "It's not that. I've been wanting to divorce for a long time now. Now that Dera's back, you can openly be with the woman you love."

Frank laughed, a bitter, bitter laugh. He tore the papers in two, and I shrieked. "Why did you do that? You don't love me, why won't you divorce me?" I screamed. My voice was desperation-tinged, my heart thudded painfully in my chest.

During the three years we were married, Frank never loved me. He'd held me at arm's length, never once being affectionate. I'd loved him, thinking that if I dedicated myself to him and loved him unconditionally, he'd come to love me. But three years had passed, and Frank's heart remained as cold as ice. As much as I tried, I couldn't make him love me.

"Frank, please. Let me go so you can be happy," I pleaded, tears welling up in my eyes.

"Never. Divorce? You think you can just wake up and ask me to divorce you? In your dreams, Ruth," Frank taunted.

"Why? Don't you want to be with Dera? Isn't that why you slept with her last night?" I couldn't help but yell.

"Ah, so this is what all this is about? No time for unnecessary jealousy, Ruth. I did nothing with her. Dera fell sick after her welcome party and I had to stay with her at the hospital. She was okay in the morning," Frank explained.

I clenched my fists. "I don't want to listen to your excuses. There's no love here. It's better to dissolve this marriage."

Frank stepped closer and grabbed my chin, forcing my head backward to glare into my hazel eyes. "I'm the one who gets to decide when this marriage is over. I don't ever want to hear you speak of divorce, do you understand?"

"The woman you love is back and clearly, you will never love me. Why not a quick ending instead of dragging it out?" I begged, crying profusely. My heart ached, as though there was something cold and hard squeezing it.

Frank didn't love me, but he didn't wish to lose me either. It was hard to say what he truly wanted. He wanted to be with Dera, didn't he? That's why he'd rush to her the moment she returned.

Frank's face relaxed when he noticed my tears. He cupped my face in his hands and wiped away the tears on my cheeks with his thumbs. "Nobody's getting divorced. Nana loves you. Let's not disturb him with petty problems."

I was about to respond when I caught a whiff of a powerful scent from Frank's jacket. It was a woman's perfume, one I recognized as belonging to Dera. The smell was overpowering, and I vomited, covering my face with my hand.

I moved away from Frank and ran to the kitchen, which was the nearest place. Frank frowned and followed me, reaching my side as I vomited into the sink.

"Are you alright?" he questioned, holding my hair back from my face as I retched.

When I was done and had water splashed across my face, my heart was racing. I had no idea whether Frank suspected I was pregnant or not.

"What is it? Why suddenly vomiting?" Frank asked again.

"Uh, I ate some bad food today," I fabricated.

Frank watched me. "You're always so mindful of what you eat, Ruth. Are you hiding something from me?" My heart was racing frantically, and my stomach was twisting with knots.

Has he found out? I asked myself.

Frank gazed at me for a few seconds. I knew he noticed that I was pale and gained a bit of weight. His eyebrows furrowed. "Wait, are you—"

I sighed in relief as Frank's phone rang, cutting off his sentence.

Frank grunted and answered. "Hello—"

"Mr. Lanka, Miss Pete is gone!" the voice on the other end said.

Frank's eyes widened in surprise. "What? I'm coming!"

He did not even glance my way before rushing out the door, his face strained. I laughed at myself. And here I thought he wasn't divorcing me because he had feelings for me. Turns out that was wishful thinking.

When Frank found out something was wrong with Dera, he'd all but vanished from the mansion to go look for her. I couldn't help but speculate about what Frank would have done if I were the one who was missing.

I had walked out of the kitchen and was going upstairs to the master bedroom when I felt a burning pain at the back of my head. I was enveloped in darkness.