Chapter 5

Georgina West

I heard my phone ringing from a distance, jolting me awake. My last memory was of curling up on the couch and telling Archer to leave when he made a menacing threat toward my boyfriend.

A familiar, masculine scent flooded my senses, causing my body to jolt upright. There, beside me, lay Archer, shirtless and sleeping soundly. My heart quickened as memories flooded back.

For ten long years, from the age of twenty until we split up, I had grown accustomed to waking up beside this man. Now, in the present, my stomach churned oddly as my eyes roamed over the scars and gunshot wounds that marked his body, each one a reminder of moments we had shared, moments when I had kissed him on those very wounds.

It was surreal to wake up in a room that had once been mine, and I couldn't help but notice that nothing had changed. I mustered the strength to punch Archer's bicep, causing him to wince. I ended up rubbing my knuckles; punching him hurt me more than it did him.

"Georgie, what the hell? Go back to sleep," he groaned, facing away from me. His tone was too familiar, as though we woke up like this every day.

"It's 7 am. You need to get dressed and take the kids to school. Get up before I kill you. I'm so mad at you. Why am I waking up next to you?" I yelled, but he just buried himself further into his pillow.

"You have to shower first, let me sleep until then," he mumbled sleepily. I contemplated punching him again and telling him not to talk to me like I am his wife, but I gave up. He was too drowsy to understand me, and I did need to shower first.

I rushed into the bathroom and was surprised to find all my products still there.

Why do men never throw things away? I made a mental note to toss my old hairbrush and nearly empty makeup products from five years ago, which were likely expired by now.

I huffed as I stepped into the shower and used Archer's shower products, grumbling about smelling like him all day. After quickly brushing my teeth, I jumped out of the shower and wrapped a fresh towel around my chest before stepping out of the bathroom. I scanned the room and found it empty, which relieved me. I didn't want Archer to see me like this—not because it might lead to something, but because as I grew older, I became more self-conscious about my body. I hated that I disliked so many things about it. While I knew that most of my stretch marks and cellulite were the result of having my beautiful children, it was still sometimes difficult to love myself completely.

I rummaged through the small drawer where I kept my emergency outfits, the ones I use when the kids insist on me staying over. I knew how much the children wanted us to be together, and it pained me to separate them from their father to come back to our house. While they'd prefer to live here with their grandparents, I felt I had no other choice. The least I could do was ensure they saw him every day and let them have sleepovers whenever they wanted.

But sometimes, they'd complain about me not staying over, something I wasn't entirely comfortable with.

"Mumma, you stayed over?" My eyes widened as Luna rushed towards me, her tiny arms wrapping around my waist.

"Yes, sweetheart. Just give me five minutes to get dressed, and I'll be down for breakfast."

"Okay, Mumma. But Dad said we could take a holiday today and go out together, wherever we want!" Luna's excitement bubbled over. I wasn't fond of Archer promising things to the kids without discussing it with me. I didn't want to be the one to disappoint them, so I often let it slide. However, I didn't like the idea of the children missing school just for a day out. We could do that on the weekends.

I knew they expected me to join them, but I had work commitments, and I wasn't as flexible as Archer.

"I need to discuss that with your dad first, and then we'll decide," I explained, and Luna's face immediately fell.

"Mumma, it's been months. I can't remember the last time we all went out," she grumbled unhappily.

"Yes, but we can plan for weekends," I began, but she shook her head vigorously.

"No, on weekends, Grandpa and Grandma can't come," she argued, and I sighed as I finally found the outfit I was looking for.

"That's true. Just let me talk to your dad once, Luna—"

"Oh no, am I in trouble?" Archer's unexpected arrival startled me as I stood there frozen, unsure of how to quickly cover myself, especially with Luna in the room.

"Yes, you are. Can you please take your daughter downstairs so I can change? I'll talk to you in five minutes," I said with a stern tone as his eyes seemed to linger on my body, making no effort to look away. "Archer!" I called out to him when he didn't respond.

"No, you two talk here, and then come down and tell me what the decision is," Luna chimed in before she left the room, whispering to her father, "Please, Dad, I really want to see this movie. It's my favorite. I don't want to go to school." Her voice carried a hint of sadness as Archer ruffled her hair before she left.

"NO, you leave too. I'll be down in five minutes," I repeated firmly, but he chose to close the door to the room, causing me alarm.

"Archer!" I warned him as I saw him taking steps towards me, my heart racing within my ribcage. My back hit the closet door as he closed in, my chest rising and falling with each nervous breath.

"What is there to discuss?" he asked casually, and I shot him a glare because he knew that such statements infuriated me.

I didn't know what had gotten into him lately, but the sweet, compromising Archer seemed to have disappeared. He had started acting like one of those bitter exes who did things just to provoke a reaction from their former partners.

"Two things," I began, my irritation evident. "First, why did you pick me up and bring me to your room, then sleep beside me? We're not together anymore, so that's not something that can happen or something that is appropriate. Secondly, you have to tell me before you make plans with the kids, especially when they expect me to be a part of it. I don't work for you anymore, and I can't just take a leave whenever."

"You smell like me," he stated, making me groan as I pushed against his chest, attempting to reach the bathroom again to change. However, he didn't budge or move an inch.

"Okay, seriously, what's going on?" I asked, my frustration mounting. "Why are you acting like this all of a sudden? It's been five years, and I thought things have always been good between us. We never fight, and we co-parent well. Why are you being so difficult now?" I implored, our eyes locking in a tense gaze.

"Fine, you made the decision to leave me, and I agreed. The kids stay with you most of the time, I agreed to that as well. The timetable, everything in our lives is decided by you, and I've never disagreed with you. But now, after five years of you getting your own way, I've come to realize something. I'm not happy with our situation. I can't stand that idiot's face, I don't want him in my house or in my kids' lives anymore, and if I had any control over your life, I'd say the same for him being in your life too," he declared, his anger evident as his words tumbled out.

Archer wasn't typically an angry person, and I'd rarely seen him so riled up in all the twenty-five years of my life. I took sharp breaths, my anger giving way to a sense of astonishment as I continued to gaze at him, my mind temporarily blank.

"So, I'm done. I won't try to be okay with things that I don't like anymore. I don't have to. I never wanted you to leave or for our marriage to end, but it only broke because of your—"

"That's not true—"

"I'm not finished," he interrupted, his tone forceful. "I made no decisions. This is all on you. So, the kids stay here, and you're welcome to stay here too, whether it's in my room or another room. But I'm taking my life back. Yes, it was my decision to agree with you, so I don't blame you for forcing anything on me. But I can't see my children like this any longer. I've made my decision, and for the first time, I'd like to see you adjust to it."