Chapter 4

By the time I returned home with the divorce agreement from my brother, Bianca and Ron had already moved in.

Austin was sitting on our bed with Ron on his lap, and the boy's shoes were leaving marks all over the white sheets. Bianca was busy in the kitchen, wearing my clothes.

One of the matching mugs Austin and I had made together lay broken in the trash, and someone had replaced the tablecloth with one I didn't recognize.

The roses in the vase were gone, swapped out for lilies.

Five years ago, we'd searched the whole city for a set of dishes. Back then, he'd said we should decorate the house the way I liked.

Now another woman was taking over everything I'd chosen, piece by piece.

When Bianca saw me, she set down the ladle and put on a wounded look.

"Ms. Sinclair, I'm so sorry. Ron's been having nightmares, and Mr. Vance was worried we wouldn't be safe on our own, so he's letting us stay for a few days. As soon as I feel better, we'll move out."

Austin added, "I've taken care of it. They'll move out in a few days. Don't get upset over something so small."

I looked around the house that suddenly felt like a stranger's and almost laughed.

"That's great," I said. "Looks like this place already has a new lady of the house."

Bianca's face went pale, and she immediately looked at Austin.

He frowned. "Livia, don't say that. She and her son have been through enough. Why do you have to be so harsh?"

Standing in a house I barely recognized, I felt the last of my love die.

Every last sign that we'd ever loved each other was gone. It was time for me to go, too.

I looked at him, took a stack of documents out of my bag, and set them on the table.

"You promised to make it up to me. Sign these."

Austin glanced at the list of jewelry and clothes on top, then picked up a pen without asking. "Fine. You can have whatever you want. Just stop being mad about your birthday."

He flipped through the documents without reading them. When he reached the last few pages, my heart leaped into my throat.

The divorce agreement was tucked into that stack.

Just then, Ron started pestering him for a toy. Still soothing the boy, Austin flipped to the last page and signed his name without a second thought.

And just like that, my heart sank.

I gathered up the documents and traced his signature with my fingertip.

Five years of marriage, reduced to a careless stroke of his pen.

I went back to the bedroom for some clothes and Bruto, the dog my mother had left me.

But I searched the whole room and couldn't find him.

Just as I was about to go downstairs, a faint whimper came from the corner.

I rushed over and found Bruto stuffed into a cramped toolbox. He was curled up inside, looking at me through a gap and whining.