All Chapters of The Last Divorce: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

The news that Ryland Webster was putting on a fireworks show for New Year's Eve had taken the entire city of Kingsley by storm.I was the last person to hear about it.Everyone in Kingsley knew he was a notorious playboy. He'd even divorced me nine times over one girlfriend after another.But a grand, public declaration of love like this? That was a first.I stared at the mockup one of the event staff had sent over.The words RYLAND ♥ JASMINE spelled out across the fireworks display. The sight stung my eyes.I locked my phone and turned back to the task in front of me, picking up the pace."Cash, a house, a car, a yacht. Take your pick. As long as—""I don't want any of it!"Before I could finish, the girl sniffled and cut me off through tears.I'd heard those same words far too many times before. Numb to it by now, I looked at her and said calmly, "I don't love him. And you'd be better off not falling in love with him either. Someone like Ryland isn't worth it."The first f

Pulling my coat tighter around myself, I crouched on the curb, shivering. Cars streamed endlessly down the road, yet not a single one had come for me.I called Ryland again and again.By the time my body felt numb with cold, a deafening boom exploded across the night sky. Brilliant fireworks bloomed overhead. The glowing declaration of love lit up the skies above Kingsley.Passersby stopped to admire it, speculating about which lucky girl had managed to capture Ryland's heart.Then they lowered their eyes and noticed me sitting there in disarray. Covering their mouths, they hurried away.I let out a self-mocking laugh and looked up at the dazzling display.Each burst of color felt like a death sentence for my marriage to Ryland....Maybe it was the alcohol, but that night, I slept terribly.One strange, fragmented dream after another drifted through my mind, until I thought I heard Ryland's voice."Cammie... Cammie..."It had to be a dream. Ryland hadn't used my nickname in

Ryland ran as fast as he could, but no matter how hard he pushed himself, two legs could never outrun four wheels.Even so, he had to do everything in his power to stop me from leaving.That feeling of dread kept circling through his mind. He had a terrifying certainty that if I left this time, I would be gone forever.He saw me lower the brim of my hat and walk past him at the hospital.Ever since last night, when I hadn't called him once or sent him a single message, the unease had only grown.Then, that morning, he'd jolted awake and found that I was not in the space beside him. The anxiety had nearly swallowed him whole.For the first time, he ignored the other woman's pleading and attempts to keep him there. Without hesitation, he left.Watching the car carrying me disappear farther and farther into the distance, Ryland knew that if this continued, he would lose any chance he had left.So he spun around, jumped back into his car, and slammed his foot onto the accelerator.

However, he'd forgotten something.When we lost our child, I was the one who suffered most.The guilt I felt toward him and our baby...The devastating news that I might never be able to have children again...All of that grief piled on top of itself. Then he said those words that cut straight through my heart.Did he ever regret them?Did he ever notice me locking myself in the bathroom, breaking down, and hurting myself over and over again?He did. He saw everything. He knew exactly how much pain I was in.Sadly, he was blinded by resentment, and he pushed all the blame onto me.Maybe that was the moment disappointment first planted its seed in my heart. Every time he asked for a divorce because of another woman, that seed grew a little larger. Now, it had become a towering tree, one that could never be uprooted....Ryland simply told Jasmine, "I've been discharged from the hospital today." Then he ended the call.The only thing he still believed he hadn't been wrong a

Whether by coincidence or deliberate planning, Ryland saw a ginkgo tree standing outside my apartment building.It was late autumn. Golden leaves blanketed the ground beneath the tree.Ryland stood there holding my favorite cake and a bouquet he knew I loved. The scene was almost identical to the day he confessed his feelings to me."Cammie."As I approached the tree, he stepped out from behind it.However, the girl he once loved in his youth would never again see him as the boy she loved."Twelve years ago, I confessed to you beneath a ginkgo tree. Twelve years later, I'm asking you to marry me beneath one."A proposal.I almost laughed.So he did know we were divorced, and not just once, but nine times.I'd spent eight long years clinging to those beautiful memories. In the end, all they brought me was a ninth divorce.Those memories had turned into a joke to me. They were the beginning of every pain I hated most today."Cammie, will you give me one more chance?" He dropp