I Married a Man Who Couldn’t Feel… Until I Left

Chapter 2 - Liana

The last thing I expected to see when I turned around was a face I had buried years ago standing in front of Adrian’s gate like he had always belonged there, like tonight was not falling apart right in front of me.

“Liana,” he said again, stepping closer, his shoes crunching lightly on the gravel, his voice low but steady in a way that made my chest tighten for a completely different reason than everything that had just happened inside that house.

For a second, I just stared at him, my fingers still wrapped around the car door, because nothing about this made sense, not the timing, not his presence, not the way my name sounded coming from him after all these years.

“Daniel?” I said slowly, my brows pulling together as I tried to match the man in front of me to the boy I used to know, the one who used to sit beside me in class, always smiling, talking like life was simple even when it wasn’t.

He let out a small breath, almost like relief, rubbing the back of his neck as he gave a short nod. “Yeah,” he said, his eyes scanning my face quickly, lingering for a second longer than necessary, like he was trying to read something in me. “It’s me.”

The rain had started coming down harder now, soaking through my hair and sliding down my neck, but neither of us moved to get out of it.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, my voice coming out sharper than I intended, my grip tightening on the car door because tonight had already taken too much from me, and I was not ready for surprises.

Daniel didn’t answer immediately. His eyes flicked past me toward the house, just for a second, but I noticed it.

That small movement sat wrong in my chest.

“I could ask you the same thing,” he said finally, his voice softer now, but there was something under it, something careful, like he was choosing every word instead of speaking freely the way I remembered.

A humorless laugh slipped out of me before I could stop it, and I shook my head, pushing wet hair away from my face. “You don’t want the answer to that,” I muttered, my throat tight, my chest still heavy from everything upstairs.

His gaze dropped briefly to my hand, then to my face again, his expression shifting slightly, concern creeping in. “You seem worked up,” he said quietly, taking a small step closer, his hand lifting halfway like he wanted to reach for me, then stopping himself.

“Of course I am” I replied, pulling the car door open wider, needing something to do with my hands because standing here talking felt too still, too slow for a night that had been anything but.

“Liana,” he said again, more firmly this time, and something in his tone made me pause.

I didn’t turn fully, but I didn’t get into the car either.

“What?” I asked, my patience thin, my emotions too close to the surface.

He hesitated, his jaw tightening slightly as his eyes moved to the house again like he was checking something.

That was when the unease settled properly in my chest.

“You shouldn’t be here,” he said finally, his voice low, almost drowned out by the rain.

A small frown formed on my face as I turned to look at him properly now, my hand still resting on the car door. “That’s funny,” I said, a bitter edge slipping into my voice, “because I just left my husband inside with another woman, so I think I’ve done enough staying for one night.”

Daniel didn’t react the way I expected. He didn’t look shocked or confused or even angry on my behalf.

He just looked… tense.

Like that wasn’t the part bothering him.

“That’s not what I mean,” he said, shaking his head slightly, stepping closer despite the rain, his voice dropping even lower. “I mean this place. This house. Something about it is—”

“Liana.”

Adrian’s voice cut through the air behind me, calm as ever, but this time it landed more cold than usual.

My body stiffened before I even turned.

Slowly, I looked over my shoulder.

He was standing a few steps behind us now, fully dressed, his hair still slightly messy, his expression the same calm and controlled look he always wore, but there was something off about it tonight.

His gaze moved from me to Daniel, pausing just for a second longer than normal, and the air between the three of us shifted instantly.

“You’re still here,” Adrian said, his tone even, but his eyes were not on me anymore they were on Daniel.

Daniel straightened slightly, his shoulders pulling back, his body language changing in a way I recognized immediately, not aggressive, but alert.

“I was leaving,” I said quickly, turning back to the car, suddenly very aware that I did not want to be standing between whatever this was.

“Liana,” Adrian said again, and this time there was something in his voice that made my hand pause on the door.

I turned slowly.

“What?” I asked, my patience gone now, my chest tight with everything I had been holding in.

He took a step closer, stopping just short of me, his eyes locking onto mine, and for a moment, everything else faded.

“You weren’t supposed to find out like this.”

The words hit the wrong spot not because of what they meant, but because of how they sounded.

I blinked, my brows pulling together as confusion cut through the anger. “Find out what?” I asked, my voice slower now, my grip loosening slightly on the car door.

He didn’t answer, his jaw tightened almost imperceptibly, his gaze flicking past me toward the house again.

That same look, it made my stomach drop.

“You mean the cheating?” I said, my voice rising slightly, trying to pull the conversation back to something that made sense. “Because I think I found out exactly how I was supposed to, Adrian.”

His eyes snapped back to mine, but he still didn’t say anything.

And that was when it clicked this wasn’t about that.

A cold feeling spread slowly through my chest.

Daniel shifted beside me, his voice low but firm. “You need to go,” he said, not to Adrian, but to me, his eyes serious now, all traces of familiarity gone.

I looked at him, then back at Adrian, my heart beating faster for a reason I couldn’t explain.

“What is going on?” I asked, my voice quieter now.

Neither of them answered immediately, the silence became uncomfortable.

Adrian exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair before looking at me again. “Just go, Liana,” he said, his tone controlled again, but this time it sounded urgent like he was trying to hide something.

That was the final push, I let out a short laugh, shaking my head as I finally got into the car, pulling the door shut harder than necessary.

“Don’t worry,” I said through the slightly open window, my eyes moving between both of them. “I’m not staying anywhere near this mess.”

Daniel stepped back slightly, giving me space, but his eyes stayed on me, like he wanted to say more and was choosing not to.

Adrian didn’t move, he just stood there watching but not me.

I started the engine, the sound cutting through the tension as I pulled out slowly, the headlights sweeping across them both for a brief second.

I told myself not to look again, that it didn’t matter but something pulled at me anyway.

So I glanced at the mirror just once and my grip on the steering wheel tightened instantly.

A chill ran dow

n my spine,

“What the hell…” I muttered under my breath, my foot pressing harder on the accelerator.