"Julian, aren't you exhausted? Playing both sides, juggling two people—do you even have enough energy to keep up the act?" I asked, my tone laced with biting sarcasm that he couldn't possibly miss.
His jaw tightened with anger. "What is your problem, Eleanor? I worked out a perfect arrangement with Barry—you stay home, he stays out, no fighting, no drama. What could be better than that? Barry has already agreed to it. Why are you being so stubborn and unreasonable?" he asked, as if I had no right to refuse his demeaning terms.
In his eyes, I had no choice, no right to turn him down. I couldn't begin to fathom what I was to him—an afterthought, a pawn, a trophy to keep around for show.
At that moment, my last shred of affection for him died completely, snuffed out by his cruelty and arro
