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Chapter 3
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2024-06-23 15:44:36[Vivienne]
It takes me a minute to process what just happened. I don’t know why I said those words. I don’t want a divorce. I love Caden. I want to be with him forever. I want to have kids with him. I want to build a family with him.
But he’s so done with me, that he didn’t even hesitate to agree to my demand.
Tears spring to my eyes, and for the first time in a long time, I feel broken.
I slump to the floor, hugging my knees to my chest.
I cry until I feel numb.
I cry until I feel empty.
I cry until I feel nothing.
And then when I can’t cry anymore, I pick myself up and head back to my room.
There’s no point in staying back anymore. Caden doesn’t want me.
It’s more obvious than ever.
I pack my stuff and get ready to leave.
When I’m done packing, I call someone I haven’t contacted in a while.
He picks up in the second ring, and even though I try to keep the hurt at bay, it still shines through my voice.
“Hey, Viv. What’s up?”
I take a deep breath, not knowing how to say what I need to say. So I just go with the flow. “I want to divorce Caden. Can you help me?”
A pause. And then, “I’m sorry, what?”
I swallow the lump in my throat, and repeat myself, “I want to divorce Caden. Please help me with it. I don’t want to stay in this marriage anymore.”
“Viv…what happened…where are you right now?”
I sniff, wiping my tears away. “I’m in Caden’s house. But I want to leave as soon as possible. Just tell me if you can help me or not. I’m done repeating myself to anyone who asks me the same question.”
I hear him sigh, and for a moment, I think he would refuse to help me. I don’t know why I called him instead of my best friend, but I needed someone to help me right now and he’s the only lawyer I know.
“Of course. I’ll help you. Just tell me where you are right now. I’ll come to get you.”
I breathe out a sigh of relief and tell him the address.
“Alright, I’ll be there in 20 minutes. Stay put, okay?”
I nod and hang up.
I go to the bathroom to freshen myself up, and try to get rid of the puffy red eyes. I know I look like a mess, but I don’t care about it right now.
All I want to do is get out of this house and never return to it ever again.
True to his words, Elijah shows up at the house twenty minutes later.
To my huge surprise, he looks far more handsome than he looked the last time we met three years ago. He’s wearing a sharp suit and looks much more professional than he ever did. Perhaps it’s the seriousness he had garnered in his deep eyes, or the way his chin is peppered with a faint beard, he looks different somehow. Different but handsome.
But that’s only a brief thought that crosses my mind, because the moment he steps inside the house, I throw my arms around him, not able to stop the hurt from leaking through my eyes.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to—”
“Hey.” He says soothingly, running a hand down my spine. “Enough. No more crying, alright? Let’s get you out of here. I’ll take you to my place. We can talk about everything when you feel better, okay?”
I nod, wiping my tears away. “Okay. Just give me five minutes. I need to grab a few things.”
He nods. “Sure. I’ll wait in the car.”
I grab my purse and suitcase, and head to the door. But before I get the chance to leave, my phone rings again. Caden’s name flashes on the screen.
I debate for a moment if I should answer it or not, but eventually press the green button and put the phone against my ear.
He doesn’t even wait for me to say hello.
“I just called to let you know that I’m leaving for Washington tonight. I don’t know when I’ll be back so don’t wait up.”
I clench my jaw, gripping the handle of my suitcase tighter. Has he already forgotten that I asked him for a divorce? That I don’t want to have anything with him anymore? Does he take me so lightly that he thinks our argument over the divorce isn’t even worth his concern?
I’m so mad at him and I’m about to say something when he hangs up without giving me the chance to speak.
I stare at my phone for a moment, gritting my teeth, feeling angry and disappointed at myself. How could I marry such an insensitive asshole? How could I give my heart to someone who doesn’t even care about it? How? How could I be so blind and an idiot?
I don’t know how long I stand there staring at the screen of my phone, but when I look up, I find Elijah leaning against the side of his car, watching me quietly.
I can’t decipher what he’s thinking, but the frown on his face tells me that he wants to ask me if I’m alright.
I give him a smile I know he knows is fake and head towards him.
“Ready?” He asks, opening the trunk of his car and helping me load my suitcase in it.
I nod. “Yeah.”
“Good. Let’s go then.”
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[Vivienne]During the entire drive to Elijah’s place, I keep my gaze out and thought to myself.Elijah tries to break the silence a few times, but I only have a word or two for him in response. I’m just not in the mood for a conversation. All I want is some space and quiet, so I can finally come to terms with what I’m about to do.Once we reach his place, he comes around to open the door, and it’s only then I realize that we have reached.“I’m sorry, I kind of faded away,” I mumble apologetically, but he only rolls his eyes.“Don’t be,” he says and I like the way he’s not making a big deal of anything. He behaves like he always does, always cool in the head. “You know I’m glad to be of help. You wouldn’t have called if you didn’t already know.”He’s right. I do know. When I left my home for Caden, Elijah was the only one who came to tell me that he had always had my back. That no matter the circumstances, he would never disappoint me.I nod and that’s where we leave the conversation.
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[Vivienne]To say I know the voice of the woman on the line would be an understatement.“What’s the point of calling me right now, Sasha?” I say and suppress a yawn. This is the worst thing to wake up to. To hear the sound of the woman behind my failed marriage. Well, one of the reasons.She laughs, sounding more excited than I want to know.“Just making sure it’s not one of your stunts to get Caden’s attention. We both know you’ll do anything for that man, even fake a divorce request to get him running to you.”I grit my teeth, my hands turning white around the phone. I can feel my temper rising, but I control it somehow.“Trust me, Sasha, you haven’t seen half of what I can do to get Caden’s attention.”She laughs, mocking me. I try not to lose my temper.“I don’t doubt it, Vivienne. But you should know by now that Caden wants nothing to do with you. You were just a replacement, remember? Your marriage has been a farce since day one.”I clench the phone tighter, so close to screamin
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[Vivienne]“Stop watching that!” Elijah yanks the remote from my hand and turns off the TV.“Hey,” I try to stop him, but the screen is already black.“This is not moving on, Viv. You should know that better than anyone.”He’s right. I shouldn’t care about what happens in Caden’s life anymore. If the world thinks he’s a cheater and a manwhore, then maybe they are right. And that maybe is a good thing because now I have one more reason to divorce him.A few hours ago, when he texted me and I told him what the media was calling him, he didn’t even care to deny their claim. He just stopped texting altogether, leaving me like he always did whenever he was done with me.I was so mad at him that I instantly blocked him and his assistant.I know it’s childish, but that’s all I could think of at that moment. I just wanted to do something to release this pain in my heart. And it helped. Somewhat.“You’re right,” I say and get up. “I should stop wasting my time. Are the papers ready?”He nods,
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[Vivienne]Without waiting for my response, he grabs my wrist and pulls me with him.I stumble a little, but somehow manage to keep my balance.But Caden doesn’t slow down, not even for a second.He drags me with him until we reach the end of the corridor and enter his office.When the door shuts close behind us, he throws me into the room and I stumble on my heels, crashing against his desk. For a second, something passes his face, his features soften, but by the time I blink, that expression is gone and he’s back to scowling.He walks around the desk and takes a seat, his gaze never leaving mine.“Why are you here?” He asks, his voice calm but I can hear the rage underneath.“I came to give you this.” I take
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[Vivienne]During the entire meeting, I have this constant, annoying feeling of being stared at.And not just by anyone.But by the most obvious man in the room.At times, I have the strongest urge to call him out on how unprofessional he’s being, but every time I work up the courage to do so, someone addresses me, trying to engage me in conversation or ask for my feedback.I’m grateful to whoever is up there, hearing my pleas for a break, when the meeting adjourns for lunch.The people slowly file out while Andrew steps away to attend a call.I wait for him to return, but before he does, I feel Caden slide in next to me, as if he doesn’t care about an audience. Not that he has to—there isn’t a single soul left in the room except for us.How hungry do these fucking elites have to be to clear out the room in less than five minutes?A lot, I guess.“We meet again,” he says, pulling me out of my thoughts.But I don’t have to entertain his nonsense. I’m a grown woman. I run a fucking busi
