When He Begged to Reunite, I Walked Away

Under the curious stares of the crowd, I stepped back. "Jesse, you're reading too much into this. I'm not here for you." Jesse's brow furrowed, his expression full of disbelief. We had been in love for over a decade. Of course he assumed there was no other reason I'd come to his wedding. He took my words for stubbornness and reached for my hand. I sidestepped, slipping out of his reach. Something desolate flickered in Jesse's eyes. "Penny, do you still hate me?" I met his gaze, steady and clear. "I don't hate you. I just don't love you anymore." His hands closed around my shoulders, urgent. "Penny, I'm different now. I can give you everything you ever wanted. Let's start over." I wrenched myself free, my voice sharp. "This is your wedding day, yours and Serena's. Everything you have now, she gave you. Don't forget that. "And grabbing me like this, in front of all these people? What's wrong with you?" Something shifted in his expression. He pulled his hand back, fingers curling slowly into a fist. Jesse pressed his lips together. "Everything I have now, I earned myself." I let out a short, humorless laugh. I took in his perfectly styled hair and the designer clothes he wore head to toe. On a nearby table stood a framed wedding photo of him and Serena, their names printed on a welcome sign beside it. The man in front of me felt like a stranger. "Even so, we've been divorced for years. And you know me, I've never been in the habit of going after taken men." Jesse fell silent. In a haze, my mind drifted back five years. A cramped little rental apartment. The two of us squeezed into a small bed. Jesse would pull me close from behind, night after night, making the same promises over and over. "Penny, thank you for loving me. I swear I'll never let you down. I'll work hard, I'll make money, and I won't let you suffer another day." But when the money ran out, he forgot every word. I saw it with my own eyes: Jesse in Serena's car, leaning in to brush a soft kiss to her forehead before pocketing the black card she handed him. He came home that same night acting like nothing had happened. I was the only one who lay awake, tossing and turning in the dark. He held me close, the same as always, trying to make me feel safe. All I felt was smothered. It had been his choice, to walk away from what we had, all for the money and connections Serena could offer. Now I treated him as though he'd never existed. I looked away, my voice flat with disappointment. "Jesse. Take care of yourself." I turned and walked away. He called my name. I didn't look back. What echoed in my head were the words he'd said the day it all ended. "Penny, I'm sick of this life. All I did was choose something better for myself. What exactly did I do wrong? We're done." It had been over long before either of us said the words out loud. What I'd never told him was that Serena had reached out to me first. She slid a check across the table. Five million dollars, if I agreed to let go.