The End That Isn't
1406 Words
The mansion was silent except for the echo of their footsteps.
Selene had stepped out of the car first, her heels clicking against the marble floor as she walked inside. Her husband followed, but they didn’t speak. They never did.
Not anymore.
She expected him to disappear into his separate wing of the house, like always. But tonight—tonight, she couldn’t let it happen.
Not after what she had seen.
Not after him—Adrian.
As her husband turned toward the stairs, she spoke.
“Is this it?”
He paused mid-step.
Selene’s nails dug into her palms as she took a slow breath. “Are we finally at the end?”
He turned, his expression unreadable. “What are you talking about?”
She let out a cold laugh. “Us. This marriage.”
Something flickered in his gaze—annoyance? Amusement? It was always hard to tell with him.
“Selene,” he sighed, rubbing his temple. “It’s late.”
She stepped closer, refusing to let him dismiss her. “No, tell me. Is this what we are now? You, drinking with half-naked women, and me…”
Her voice faltered.
Me, in another man’s arms.
She didn’t say it.
But she knew he tried to read her expression to make out what she was hesitating to say.
His jaw clenched. “You don’t care what I do, and I don’t care what you do. That’s how this works, isn’t it?”
Her stomach twisted. “So it’s really over.”
He scoffed, turning away. “It was never real to begin with.”
The words hit harder than she expected.
This wasn't the same man she had shared a bed with few years ago.
At some point she had believed she had romantic feelings for him even before they moved to their new house, after her brother had warned her not to mess up her marriage with her obsession for Adrian.
Though their marriage had never been about love—it was a business arrangement. Her family was powerful, and he needed their name to keep his position at the company. Their relationship was a well-crafted illusion for the media, the investors, the people who mattered.
They couldn’t divorce.
Not yet.
Not without destroying everything.
But tonight, standing in their cold, empty home, Selene realized something.
She wasn’t willing to play her part anymore.
He started to leave again, but she called after him.
“One of us should have the decency to say it.” Her voice was quieter this time, almost a whisper. “Even if we can’t leave, we’re done, aren’t we?”
He stopped at the top of the stairs, looking back at her with something that almost resembled pity.
“We’ve been done for a long time, Selene.”
Then he disappeared into his room, shutting the door behind him.
And Selene stood there, staring at the empty space where he had been.
She should have felt relieved.
Instead, all she felt was rage.
She refused to be in the same space with someone like Ethan.
Without thinking twice, she left the mansion in her own car to a hotel suite.
***
At the hotel suite, Selene didn’t go to bed.
She poured herself a drink, downing it too fast. Then another.
But alcohol wasn’t enough.
Nothing ever was.
She grabbed her phone, scrolling through names she barely recognized.
Then she stopped.
A contact she was planning to use earlier that night before she had Encountered Adrian.
Her fingers hovered for only a second before she pressed call.
The voice on the other end was deep, smooth. “Didn’t think I’d hear from you again.”
Selene exhaled slowly. “I need someone to spend the night with me.”
A low chuckle. “Rough night?”
She didn’t answer.
Because it didn’t matter.
Nothing mattered.
***
An hour later, she stood staring at the city lights stretching beneath her in her penthouse. With the male Escort who his name was Eric.
Eric leaned against the bar, swirling the dark amber liquid in his glass. His sharp features were illuminated by the dim glow of the chandelier.
“So,” he drawled, watching her. “What’s the occasion?”
Selene exhaled, leaning against the window. “Do I need one?”
Eric smirked, setting his drink down. “No, but it’s fun when people do.”
She rolled her eyes, pushing off the glass. “Are we doing this or not?”
Eric stepped closer, reaching for her wrist, his touch featherlight. “How do you want it tonight, huh?”
Selene’s breath caught. She didn’t answer.
Because they both knew how everything was going to be laid out.
"Make me forget everything." and with that, it was another night with a different Male Escort.
Memories of the man to hight to reach too... she recalled how Adrian had ignited the flames in her body earlier that evening.
Eric smiled at her comment. “Tell me, does he know what you do when you leave him?” He said referring to her husband but Selene was fixated on Adrian and how his kisses and touch still lingered on her memories.
Her stomach twisted. “You think I care?”
“Oh, I know you care. That’s the problem, isn’t it?”
She clenched her jaw, yanking her hand free. “Shut up.”
Eric chuckled. “You’re pissed because I’m right.”
He wasn’t wrong in a way.
And that was exactly why she kissed him.
Because for a few minutes, she could pretend it wasn’t Adrian she wanted.
***
Adrian’s POV
He had been waiting.
Leaning against the bar in the hotel lobby, watching the security footage from his phone.
And there she was.
Selene.
In another man’s arms, kissing and caressing.
He owned the hotel and he had kept tabs on her for awhile after he found out she was frequenting the hotel.
Something was wrong with her marriage and now it will be easier for him to get access to Selene.
Adrian exhaled sharply, tapping his fingers against the whiskey glass.
She thought she was going to forget about him?
She thought she was proving a point.
But all she was doing was running in circles, crashing into the same inevitable conclusion.
Because there was no version of this where she didn’t end up back in his orbit.
Where she didn’t end up back in his arms.
***
The Morning After
Sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, harsh and uninvited.
Selene stirred, her head pounding—a mix of exhaustion, regret, and the remnants of alcohol she barely remembered drinking.
Eric was still asleep beside her, his arm draped lazily over his chest.
She didn’t even recall his name.
Didn’t care to.
Because it didn’t work.
The numbing, the forgetting—it never did.
Selene slipped out of bed, gathering her dress from the floor, slipping it over her head.
Her movements were quick, practiced.
She had done this before.
More times than she could count.
But last night had been different.
Because for the first time, it hadn’t been about distraction.
It had been about rebellion.
Against the hollow marriage she was chained to. Against the man who she used to be obsessed with. Against the undeniable truth clawing at her from the inside.
That the only person she truly wanted… was Adrian Cross.
And she hated herself for it.
She had barely made it to the door when the voice behind her stopped her cold.
“Running away already?”
Selene stilled.
Not Eric.
Not the voice she expected to hear.
Slowly, she turned.
And there he was.
Adrian.
Leaning against the doorframe of the penthouse suite, arms crossed, storm-gray eyes locked onto her with a sharpness that stole her breath.
Her fingers tightened around her heels. “What the hell are you doing here?”
Adrian’s lips curved—slow, dangerous. “Funny, I was just about to ask you the same thing.”
Her pulse thundered. “You followed me. How do you have the key to this suite?"
He didn’t deny it. Didn’t blink.
“I told you,” he murmured, stepping closer, his voice a lethal whisper. “You can run all you want, Selene. But you’ll always end up right back here. Together with me."
Her throat went dry.
Because deep down, she knew he was right.
- Writer
