His Sister-in-Law, My Hell

only once befor

xandr

ctly as she remembered. It held a

her own voice from shaking.

When he spoke again, his voice had

u told me to never contact you

n was fair. S

e to say. She couldn' t explain the years of ho

y. She could hear the faint sound of traffic on hi

you?" he as

ot an offer of hel

ity hos

minutes," he said, not a

r dizzy. But then, a flicker of her old, broken sel

"I... I have some things I need t

low, dangerous, and absolutely uncompromisi

ne wen

e. He had dropped a multi-million dollar negotiation mid-sentence to take her call.

na

st medical advice, the discharge papers a testament to her quiet rebellion. The pain in

ll, private office downt

divorce," she told the clerk, her voice

tired eyes, typed her name into the sy

andria

d Colby S

"Ma' am, there' s no ma

not possible. We were married at St.

th a pity that made Alexandria' s skin crawl. "But the license

he turned her monitor slightly. "Colby Sheppard is legally

to a name on

amryn Wi

til she couldn' t breathe. It wasn' t a sham marriage. It was a non-existent one. Her entire life for the past six months, t

-the traffic, the sirens, the chatter of people-faded into a dull roar. The

in her pocket. A

rry about our fight. I' m heading

s coming "home." To their fake h

messag

from our first date? I' ll pick som

omises-was a fresh stab of pain. She felt a tearing sensation in he

m one last time.

ad tried to create a scene of domestic bliss. Candles were lit. Her favorite jazz music

voice soft with relief. He came for

a ballerina. "I got you something. To say I' m sorry.

ce where its companion used to sit. The space was empty because

ne?" she asked,

amryn felt so bad about that. She' s just cl

took her hands. His were

ve to be patient with her. She' s been th

fe, her min

pain inside her was so immense it had become a strang

ing her hands away. "I think

tched her, a flicker of unease in his eyes. He felt like she

x, wa

the gift box she was still carrying in her tote b

d out, landing face up o

n to grab it, b

eld the small, black-and-white image, a confuse