Their marriage was a deal. Loving him was Dianna’s biggest mistake. Dianna Bahr and Theodore Rodriguez were bound by an arranged marriage. One built on power, not love. What grew between them wasn’t affection, but cold silences, shared lies, and a bed that never felt like hers. When Dianna finally walked away, she swore never to look back, no matter how much her heart still ached for the man who destroyed her. Five years later, a phone call shatters her carefully rebuilt life: Theo has been in a terrible accident… and he’s lost part of his memory. Now, he believes they’re still married.....and he wants her back. Forced to return to the house that once broke her, Dianna finds a version of Theo she never knew. Warm. Attentive. Almost kind. But loving a man like Theo has never been safe. Because memories may fade.... .....but obsession never does.
View More"Some things don’t break because they fall. They break because someone chooses to drop them."
I didn’t cry when I said it.
God knows I was past that phase. I used to think that when you love someone, letting them go would destroy you. But the truth is, it felt more like opening a door and kicking out a ghost that had been squatting in the corner of my heart without paying rent.
I sat across from him. The cold marble table between us, always making this house feel more like a luxury hotel than a home.
Theo stood by the window, backlit, hands in the pockets of his gray slacks, shoulders far too relaxed for a husband who’d just been caught sleeping with another woman.
I stared at that arrogant back of his.
“I think we’re done,” I said flatly. Like I’d just told him the food was under-seasoned. Not that I wanted a divorce.
He didn’t answer. Of course not. Theo always chose silence when words felt too... human for him. He just turned, slowly, his face exactly as always. Calm, elegant, like a man who knows he could make you fall in love and regret it in the same breath.
“What makes you think we ever started anything?” he asked at last.
I let out a bitter laugh. “Funny. I almost believed our marriage was real.”
He stepped closer, his pace unhurried. No apology in his voice. No guilt in his eyes. Only that maddening pull...this strange fascination that never died, even after I killed everything else I felt.
“You think this is about her?” His low voice poured out like expensive poison. “You think this is about me sleeping with another woman?”
I raised an eyebrow. “No. That was just the final spark before this house went up in flames. Don’t flatter yourself.”
His gaze hardened. But I didn’t flinch. I’d bowed my head enough in the past two years. Held my breath just so I wouldn’t mess with the rhythm of his perfect little life. I wasn’t a wife. I was filler. A silent plus-one who looked good in charity gala photos.
Theo stared at me for a long moment. Then his eyes dropped to the brown envelope on the table. Inside was the divorce paper.
Signed.
“So this is your decision?”
“Yes. Before I change my mind and slash your tires.” I smiled, sharp and sarcastic. “Think of it as my last act of love.”
“And what is it you want now?” each word pressed against my chest.
I took a breath. A deep one.
“I want to walk out of this room and never look back. I want to sleep through the night without imagining you touching her the way you used to touch me. I want to feel like someone again. Not just the wife of a company heir who doesn’t even know when my birthday is.”
Theo watched me like he was counting the beats of my heart. “I don’t love you, Dianna,” he said.
No surprise. No remorse, either. Maybe my heart had grown numb from letting him hurt it too many times.
“I know, Theo,” I said quietly. “The thing is... I did love you.”
I stood up. Grabbed my purse. Picked up my dignity. And walked out of the room where I once dreamed of building a family.
No tears. No screaming.
Just footsteps that, for the first time in a long time, felt like they were mine.
The car slid smoothly through the packed streets of New York, though everything looked calm from behind the matte-black, bulletproof windows. Of course it did. This was a Rodriguez car. If it could talk, it’d probably have a Spanish accent and a deep, cocky voice saying, “I cost more than your apartment, Dianna.”I leaned back, head resting against buttery leather that was so soft, it made me think, huh, maybe I wouldn’t need therapy if all my problems came with headrests like this.Theo sat beside me. Gray T-shirt, black joggers, and that smirk he’d flashed five minutes ago when the driver opened the door. Now, he was quiet. Zoned in on his phone, fingers tapping fast, brows slightly furrowed like he’d just uncovered a plot twist in his life that he didn’t like.I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. I wouldn’t admit it out loud, but a small part of me… was worried.His eyes didn’t leave the screen. His jaw tightened. Then he let out a long breath and ran a hand down his face,
The car slid smoothly down the Upper East Side, and I sat in the backseat like a CEO dodging paparazzi. Except I wasn’t running from fame. I was on my way to see my amnesiac ex-husband who thought our life was still some rom-com from 2018.My right hand was busy scrolling through my phone while my left propped up my chin in an elegant pose that was really just camouflage for my emotional exhaustion.A notification pinged.Subject: “So… WHEN are you back, Di?”From: Nicole, my overly enthusiastic colleague who treated Fridays like a religious holiday.I typed quickly while glancing out the window. New York blurred past like a film montage, and I… was still stuck in the same act.To: Nicole“Monday. I’ll be back Monday. Enjoy two more days without me. Consider it a blessing.”Send.Of course, she replied two seconds later.“YES! God bless Monday. Reggie nearly set the office on fire because he swore the AC was broken, but turns out he just messed with the thermostat.”I bit back a laugh
I stood in the doorway, staring at a room that, if I didn't know any better, could be mistaken for the set of a billionaire vampire movie with unresolved childhood trauma and suspiciously tasteful interior design.This room was too big. Too neat. Too Theo.Dark maple walls met floor-to-ceiling windows that looked straight out onto a sea of pine trees. Like someone had said, "You know what would be great? A bed for two... and the elite Manhattan version of the Forks forest as a view."Seriously. It was Twilight, upgraded: not a cabin but a castle. Not a forest but a private park the size of Central Park. And not Edward Cullen, but Theo Rodriguez..sexier, darker, and, unfortunately, emotionally more destructive.In the center, a king-size bed sat with a textured black leather headboard, gray linen sheets, and pillows arranged so symmetrically my OCD felt personally addressed.An industrial chandelier hung elegantly from the high ceiling. The floors were original hardwood, interrupted by
The morning began with the sound of crying. And no, it wasn’t my heart sobbing because I was moving back in with the man who used to be the center of my universe and now couldn’t even remember the right way to break me.It was my mother.Specifically, my mother clutching an apron that read La cocina es mi reino like it was her third child.“Oh my poor daughter,” she wailed, dabbing her tears with the same apron she’d used yesterday to wipe cooking oil. “Why is your life like a Venezuelan soap opera, blended with a Colombian drama, then slapped around by a Turkish series?”I stood in the doorway in a wrinkled pink hoodie, ripped jeans (not fashion, just tragic laundry), and two massive suitcases at my feet.One for my clothes. The other… packed with things I could throw at Claudia if she ran her mouth too much.“Ma,” I sighed, rolling my eyes, “I’m not going to war. It’s just Theo’s mansion. A giant house full of bitter memories, nosy secretaries, and an ex-mother-in-law who could pass
After a lunch full of overpriced pasta, too much laughter, and two best friends who clearly enjoyed my misery way too much, I went home.My parents’ house stood as arrogantly as ever. A classic façade with wrought-iron balconies, tall windows, and a front garden so perfectly manicured it could almost hide the fact its inhabitants were dramatic as hell.I slipped inside, hung my coat on the rattan hook by the door, and was immediately hit by the familiar scent of Mom’s kitchen: garlic, tomatoes, and something that would almost certainly make me regret having eaten lunch earlier.“Dianna? You’re home?” Her voice carried from the kitchen, followed by a clatter of pots far too loud to be an accident.I didn’t answer. Just climbed two steps at a time and drifted into my room.The second the door shut, I collapsed onto my bed, face tilted to the ceiling, phone clutched in my hand.PING.One notification.The name across the screen: Claudia Rodriguez.I inhaled deeply, opened it, and there i
After the last spoonful of soup disappeared into Theo’s mouth and he leaned back with the satisfied expression of a man who’d just had a private dinner at a five-star restaurant, I stood and drew in a long breath.Time to go before I threw the tray at his face.“I’m leaving,” I said quietly, smoothing the edge of his blanket in an automatic gesture.Not because I cared. But because… okay, maybe a little. A little. And maybe because I needed an excuse to avoid looking into his eyes for too long.Theo turned his head. “Wait. Why don’t you stay here tonight?”I froze for half a second. Then spun toward him. “In a hospital bed? In a room that reeks of antiseptic with blinding fluorescent lights?”He shrugged. “You could sleep with me.”My eyes narrowed. “Maybe if you were in a coma and the doctor begged me, I’d consider it.”He laughed. “Fine. Then at least stay until I fall asleep. The doctor gave me something, and I’m already getting drowsy. I just… I don’t want to be alone.”There was
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