All Chapters of MY HUSBAND LOVED ME TOO LATE: Chapter 1 - Chapter 5

Emma's POVAfter waiting for hours, my husband finally showed up on the night of our third wedding anniversary, just to tell me he's leaving to pick Sophia Bennett from the airport.I stared at him, wondering if I'd heard him wrongly.The candlelight between us flickered, reflecting off the untouched dinner I’d spent all afternoon preparing. His favorite steak had already gone cold. The cake I had ordered sat in the center of the table, its three tiny candles still waiting to be lit."I'll make it up to you," he said, already straightening his jacket. "Sophia doesn't know New York well. She has no one else to pick her up."‘No one else.’The words hit me harder than they should have because I knew exactly who Sophia was.His first love. The woman he had never truly gotten over. The woman he had once promised to marry before life pulled them apart. The woman Lucas had loved long before he met me—the one everyone believed should have become Mrs. Ashford.For three years, I’d convinced m

Emma's POVMy fingers trembled as I picked up the notebook and slowly opened it.The first page held a carefully drawn sketch of a beautiful seaside house with floor-to-ceiling glass windows, a wide balcony, and a garden overflowing with flowers. Beneath it, in Lucas's familiar handwriting, were the words: Our forever home. Sophy will love watching the sunset from here. My breath caught. Swallowing hard, I turned the page. More sketches filled the notebook—a cozy nursery, a warm family living room, and a spacious backyard with swings. Beside one drawing, he had written, First son… Alexander. On another, our daughter… Isabelle. She'll have Sophy's smile. My vision blurred as tears moistened in my eyes, but I couldn't stop. I kept turning the pages, each one revealing another piece of the future he had dreamed of.There were honeymoon plans for Italy, Paris, and Santorini, restaurant recommendations, hotel reservations, and little reminders to surprise Sophia with flowers. One page w

Was he trying to get intimate with me?Three years ago, I would have turned around. Three years ago, I would have melted into his touch and told myself this was enough that this was as close to love as I'd ever get from him. I used to convince myself that small moments like this meant something, that if I was patient enough, gentle enough, understanding enough, they would eventually turn into something real.Not tonight.I caught his wrist before his hand could go any further and pushed it away."Don't," I said quietly.Lucas went still behind me. "Emma""You spent the whole night defending her." My voice came out steadier than I felt, though my heart was pounding so hard I was sure he could feel it through my back. "And now you want to touch me like nothing happened?""That's not what this is.""Then what is it?" I turned to face him, and even in the dark, I could see the confusion in his eyes as if he genuinely didn't understand why I was upset. That, more than anything, told me eve