He Used My Money, I Left Him

Chapter 5

I opened the bedroom door and found Damian and Selene standing very close to each other. The moment they heard me, they pulled apart quickly.

I opened my mouth to speak, but Damian looked at me like he couldn't be bothered. The words died before they reached my lips.

"Vivian, you're home. Long time no see. Don't get the wrong idea, okay? I'm Damian's business partner now. Thanks to you, the company is doing great. We've been turning a profit for three months already. We've both made quite a bit of money." Selene's face gleamed with satisfaction.

'Three months of profit?' All these months, Damian had never brought a single cent home. He had never once mentioned that the company was making money.

The capital for the company came entirely from me. And I was the last to know it was finally in the black. I had seen not one penny of the returns.

I had to hear it from someone else instead. From her.

In that moment, I felt utterly ridiculous.

I opened my mouth again and looked over at Damian.

His expression had soured. He turned his head away, almost like he couldn't face me.

But I wasn't about to let Selene watch me crumble. I reached for whatever scraps of dignity I had left. Whatever happened, Damian and I were still married. As long as the money was still in his hands, there was room to sort things out.

I fixed Selene with a flat look. "Is that so? Maybe I'll stop by the office one of these days. The company does belong to me too, after all. Doesn't it, Damian?"

Something about Damian and Selene being together nagged at me. I was certain I had missed signs somewhere in the past.

Thinking back on how everything unfolded after Damian and I got back together, it all felt a little too smooth now. Of course, a lot of that smoothness came from my own endless compromises.

But the deeper I dug into those thoughts, the heavier my heart sank.

The idea that Selene and Damian might have known each other since our school days sent a sharp, twisting pain through my chest.

Damian's face was dark. He looked like he had no interest in speaking to me at all. It wasn't until Selene reached over and squeezed his hand that he grunted something that vaguely sounded like agreement.

Something inside me hit rock bottom. It felt like my whole body was being torn apart.

'When has it become this hard just to get a response from the man standing in front of me?'

Selene's presence made the humiliation unbearable.

My nerves were stretched so thin they were about to snap. Afraid I might lose control right there, I turned around and fled the apartment.

Outside, I looked up at the sky. It was a sheet of dull, heavy gray, a perfect mirror of my mood.

I started to question myself. 'When did I lose the nerve to confront them face to face? This isn't who I was.'

All those years of love, of giving, of pouring everything into this relationship, clearly mattered to me far more than I had ever admitted.

I was scared.

Terrified of hearing the answer from Damian's own mouth. That he had stopped loving me a long time ago. That he had fallen for someone else.

That was why he had no patience left for me. And why he didn't care that I was carrying his child.

"Stop crying."

A woman's voice cut through my thoughts.

I froze. Tears blurred my vision so badly I couldn't make out who was standing in front of me. The voice didn't sound like anyone I knew.

I wiped my eyes and looked again. The woman's face was familiar, but I couldn't quite place her.

I frowned. "Who are you?"

"My name is Elara Ashford. Selene's older sister."

My frown deepened. Irritation flared up as I pulled a pack of tissues from my bag and wiped my face. I hardened my voice. "What do you want?"

"I have something to tell you. This isn't the right place for it. Would you come with me to the coffee shop up ahead for a few minutes?" Elara spoke politely.

Selene and Elara were nothing alike. Selene had a soft, almost fragile look about her. Elara came across as sharp and put together.

If I had any choice in the matter, I wanted nothing to do with this invitation. I wanted nothing to do with anyone connected to Selene.