Love After The Betrayal

tomorrow. Three yea

htstand. It was the only photo in the entire master bedroom. Their wedding photo. In it, he

onally pleasant, a polite smile on her lips that didn't reach her eyes. T

p their ent

an stood up, his movements automatic. It was 10 PM. Olivia would

n bowl. He knew she hated onions and garlic, so he never used them. He knew she liked a

liked her coffee with exactly one and a half sugars. He knew she preferred her bathwater at a precise 102 degrees Fahrenheit. He

ed, her usually perfect posture slumping slightly. She was the CEO of a tech giant, a woman who commanded boardroo

said, her voice flat.

than replied, placing the

t sit down. Instead, she loosened her silk scarf and to

g room, pulling out her phone. "Is Li

sank back into its usual heavy place. Liam Peterson. Her chil

from him," Ethan sa

to Ethan. She scrolled through her contacts, her thumb hovering over Liam's nam

the untouched soup warming his hands. "

her eyes focusing on him for the fir

s he asked it. The contract was ironclad. Three years of marriage to appease he

l is a deal, Ethan. You knew that from the beginning. This marriage was to satisfy my grandfather, to

most brilliant and beautiful woman he had ever met, had proposed this contr

nd for three years. He had been so hopelessly in love with her, he thought three years w

r life, a convenient fixture. All her warmth, all her sm

phone." She sounded frantic. She started calling the airline, then the hotel he was supposed to be at.

whiskey, drinking it straight from the bottle as she stumbled aroun

nto the voicemail. "You said y

s chest. He walked over and gently tried to take the bo

she fell against him. Her scent, a mix of expensive perfume and whiskey, filled his senses. Her head reste

his shirt, her voice thick wit

ve his body. Still, he held her. He couldn't bring himself to let go. He carefully guided her upstai

trong. Her eyes were closed, but she was stil

and mind were a million miles away with another man. In that moment of dru

His heart pounded in his chest, a wild, stupid hope flaring up. He kissed her

me again, a soft sigh ag

s breath. He pulled away as if he'd been burned. He stood up, trembling, and looked do

water on his face. He looked at his reflection in the mirror. He lo

the couch, not sleeping, just list

rantic footsteps. He sat up, his body stiff. She was

ing at him. "There was an accident. He was in a car crash i

st stare

't get there in time. His family is all in another country." She shoved a tablet and a stylus into his hands. "I need you to

sked to sign a paper that would allow the woman he loved,

ivi

snapped, her voice breaking

the tears welling up. It was a look he had yearned to see d

about saying no, about making her see him for once. But looking at her despe

ink dry on the screen, feeling like he wa

go. My flight is in two hours." She was already dialing her assistan

in the silent, empty house. Tomorrow was their di