The next morning, he was gone. I had my
lawyer bring over the divorce papers. I signed
them, left them on the coffee table, and
walked out with my suitcase. I’d been busy
during my hospital stay, making
arrangements.
My phone came alive as the plane landed in
Springfield. Dozens of missed calls from
Ethan. I didn’t call back. I texted him: “Sign
the papers. Let’s end this amicably.” And then: “If you don’t sign, I’ll take you to court.”
く
I threw myself into work at the new branch.
Two days later, Ethan showed up in
Springfield with a giant bouquet of roses and
a banner that read, “Olivia, please forgive
me!” He stood outside the office building,
refusing to leave despite the security guards‘
attempts to remove him. I’d warned my staff
that anyone who let him in would be fired.
They avoided him like the plague.
He camped outside, day and night, eating and
sleeping on the sidewalk. On the third day,
the temperature dropped. Ethan, a pampered
rich boy, couldn’t handle it and collapsed. The
guards called an ambulance.
He woke up and immediately called the police, demanding to see me. I arrived at the
hospital, divorce papers in hand, and glared
at him. “Sign them. Let’s be done with this.”
He sat in his hospital bed, shaking his head
weakly. “No. I broke up with Chloe. I told her
not to contact me again. We haven’t spoken.
Please, Olivia, forgive me…”
I knew he’d broken up with Chloe. Five days
ago, she’d been sending me hateful messages
around the clock. “You forced Ethan to leave
L
me! That’s why you had a miscarriage!
Karma’s a bitch!” “Why are you being so
cruel? Don’t you have any compassion?”
“You’re so manipulative! Pretending to be the
victim so he’d come crawling back! I
underestimated you.”
I’d calmly replied, “Honestly, I hope you two
stay together forever. If you can convince him
to sign the divorce papers, I’d be eternally
grateful.”
A week later, Sarah called. Chloe, apparently,
L
had gone off the rails after the breakup.
