Chapter Eight

I didn't remember much about the drive home,the streets blurred together beneath the glow of streetlights,my hands wrapped tightly around the steering wheel until my fingers ached.

Marcus's words followed me the entire way…the second he thought someone else might love you, he couldn't stand it.

I should have dismissed them,I should have told myself Marcus was wrong, that he was only seeing what he wanted to see because he cared about me.

But I couldn't.

The words stayed with me, weaving themselves through every memory I had of Nathaniel until I no longer knew what I was feeling.

Was it hope? Or was it simply the pain of finally realizing I had spent two years waiting for a man who had never truly seen me,by the time I arrived at the mansion, the house looked unfamiliar.

Most of the lights were off, leaving the enormous property wrapped in darkness,only one window upstairs remained illuminated...the master bedroom.

For one foolish second, my heart betrayed me.I wondered if Nathaniel was waiting for me,maybe he had calmed down,maybe he wanted to talk,maybe after everything that happened tonight, he had finally realized how far he had pushed me away.

But the thought disappeared as quickly as it came because Nathaniel didn't wait for people,he expected them to come to him.

I stepped inside quietly, the silence of the house pressing against me.Usually, the faint ticking of the grandfather clock in the hallway filled the empty spaces, but tonight even that sound felt distant.

I climbed the stairs slowly, exhaustion weighing heavily on my shoulders,all I wanted was to sleep,I wanted a few hours where I didn't have to defend myself, explain myself, or wonder whether my own husband believed the worst of me.

When I reached the bedroom door, I stopped.

Something felt wrong,I turned the handle and nothing happened.

I frowned and tried again and found out it was actually locked,my heart tightened,Nathaniel had never locked this door before,not once in two years.

I knocked softly. “Nathaniel?” No answer,I knocked again. “It's me.”

The silence that followed felt deliberate then I heard footsteps,slow and steady then the lock clicked.

The door opened, and Nathaniel appeared in the doorway,he was still wearing the clothes from the hospital,his tie hung loosely around his neck, his sleeves were rolled up, and exhaustion sat beneath his cold expression.

“What do you want?” he asked.

The question hurt more than I expected.

“I am going to bed.”

“No.” I stared at him…“No?”

“You won't be sleeping here anymore.”

For a moment, I couldn't process the words. “What are you talking about?”

“I had your things moved.”

He stepped aside slightly, allowing me to see inside,my breath caught,the room looked different and the wardrobe doors were open,my clothes were gone.

The jewelry box that sat on my dresser was missing,the books I kept beside my bed had disappeared.

Even the framed photograph from our wedding…the one I had placed there because I wanted to believe we were still something worth holding onto,was gone. My chest tightened.

“What did you do?”

“I moved your belongings.”

“Where?”

“The guest house.”

A bitter laugh escaped me. “You moved me out.”

“Our marriage is ending.”

The simplicity of his answer made something inside me crack.“So your solution was to remove me before the divorce is even final?”

“I didn't remove you.”

“No?”

I looked around the space,a place that had never completely felt like mine, but had still held pieces of my life. “My things are gone,my place is gone. Tell me, Nathaniel, what exactly am I supposed to call this?”

His jaw tightened.

“You said you wanted a divorce.”

“I did.”

“Then why are you surprised?”

I stared at him.

“Because I expected basic decency from my husband.” For a brief moment, something flashed across his face...regret but it disappeared before I could be sure.

“The guest house is comfortable.”

I almost laughed.

“How reassuring.”

“I won't argue with you tonight, Elena.” he said “You already have.” His expression hardened. “No. I've made a decision.” I swallowed the ache in my throat.“So have I.”

That made him pause.For the first time since I walked through the door, he truly looked at me.“What does that mean?”

“It means every day you give me another reason to leave.”

Something cold settled in his eyes.“Then leave,” the words were quiet and almost emotionless but somehow, they hurt more than anger would have,I nodded slowly ....“I will.”

I turned away before he could see the tears threatening to fall,I refused to cry in front of him again,not tonight and not ever again,I walked out of the room, but before leaving the hallway, something caught my attention.

The wardrobe.

One door was still slightly open,I don't know why I looked,maybe some part of me needed one last reminder that this place had once belonged to me,I stepped closer and froze.

My clothes were gone.

In their place, hanging neatly in the center, was a cream-colored silk robe embroidered with delicate flowers along the sleeves.

I knew that robe.

I'd watched Elora buy it months ago,she'd laughed as she held it against herself, calling it perfect for a honeymoon.

The boutique tag still hung from the collar.

She hadn't even worn it.

She had simply placed it here,in my closet…my bedroom,In the space that had belonged to me,my stomach twisted.

This wasn't an accident,It wasn't about a robe…It was a message,Elora wasn't waiting for Nathaniel to choose her,In her mind, she had already won.

She was already taking my place,I slowly reached out and touched the fabric, but instead of crying, something inside me went strangely quiet.For years, I had allowed people to make me feel small,Nathaniel,my parents, even Elora.

I had spent so long trying to prove that I deserved love that I forgot I deserved respect first.

I closed the wardrobe door.The woman who walked away from that room was not the same woman who had entered it,I was still hurt…still broken.

But beneath all of that was something I hadn't felt in a long time…anger and this time, I wasn't going to let anyone take that from me,I walked toward the guest house without looking back.

Because if Nathaniel and Elora wanted me gone, then I would leave but I would not leave defeated.