Divorce Freed Me, Condemned Him

Chapter 2

I'd thought once I laid everything out clearly to Felix, that would be the end of it.

What I didn't count on was how dead-set he was on patching things back up between Liam and me.

He called again, saying I should drop by their law firm to bring over the case files Liam had left behind at my place.

I thought it over for a second, then agreed.

Partly, I was just sick of going back and forth on this whole mess. Mostly, though, I figured this would be the perfect chance to draw a line under everything once and for all.

When I got to the firm, I stared up at the "Horizon Legal" sign and spaced out for a second.

When Liam had first launched the firm, he'd pointed right at that very sign and said to me,

"Emma, this is where my career starts. One day, I'm gonna give you a way better life."

Back then, no one could've guessed that the starting line of his career would end up being the finish line of our marriage.

I shook my head hard to chase those old memories away, then stepped through the door.

The second Felix saw me, he said he'd take me to Liam's office.

But we'd barely made it to the door when, through the clear glass panel, we spotted Diaia leaning half against Liam's desk, holding out a coffee to him.

The two of them were so wrapped up in gazing at each other they didn't notice Felix and me standing right outside.

Right as Liam reached out to take the coffee, his fingers twitched involuntarily, and dark brown liquid sloshed out and spilled all over the documents on his desk.

I watched him furrow his brows, clearly confused by why his hand had slipped out of nowhere.

Diaia grabbed a tissue and wiped up the mess in a flash, then pouted at him playfully. "You like me that much, huh? You were staring so hard you couldn't even hold your coffee steady."

Liam didn't think twice about it. He laced his fingers through hers, a teasing lilt to his voice. "Can you blame me? You're so gorgeous I can't think straight."

They were half a second away from kissing right there in front of us.

My chest seized up so tight I could barely breathe. I didn't dare look another second. I spun on my heel, shoved the case files at Felix, and stormed off.

Felix chased after me, awkwardness oozing out of every pore. "Emma, Liam's been under so much stress lately, he's just not thinking straight..."

I cut him off gently but firmly. "Felix, you don't have to make excuses for him. And please, stop wasting your time trying to fix things between us. I'm going to make it clear right now that there is zero chance Liam and I will ever get back together. Not now, not ever."

Felix went dead silent, his eyes going wide as he stared at something over my shoulder.

A weird sense of being watched washed over me. I turned around, and came face to face with that all-too-familiar gaze.

Liam was standing right behind me, having heard every word I'd just said, and his face was thunderous.

He fixed me with a heavy, icy glare, then curled his lip into a cold sneer. "Emma, playing hard to get won't work on me."

I froze for a second, then a wave of bitter, crushing disappointment flooded my chest.

The only reason he thought I was playing games was that he was dead set on the idea I was so head over heels for him I could never live without him.

I stared back at him calmly, my voice soft but steady. "Relax, Liam. I know how to hold onto love and when to walk away. I already agreed to the divorce, so I'm not going to cling to you."

Just then, the elevator doors in front of me slid open with a soft ding.

I stepped straight inside, and the second the doors slid shut, all the tension drained out of my body in one go, leaving me wobbly.

Images of him being sweet and affectionate with Diaia flashed through my head on a loop, like a never-ending bad movie reel.

My chest still felt like someone was twisting a knife right through my heart.

Even now, I still couldn't wrap my head around how he'd fallen for someone else so easily, like what we had meant absolutely nothing...

But my pride wouldn't let me crumble, not where he could see it.

When I got back home, the real estate agent was there with a couple of prospective buyers. The house Liam had bought was in a prime location, and ever since I'd listed it on the secondhand platform a few days prior, a stream of people had come to check it out.

Today, the buyer was so pleased they ripped through the pre-purchase agreement and signed right on the spot, no haggling.

After I received the deposit, I promised them immediately, "Don't worry, I'll move out in the next two days and leave the place spotless for you."

Over the next two days, I closed on a new apartment much closer to the hospital I worked at, then scrambled to pack up all my belongings and clean the old house from top to bottom.

As for all the luggage Liam had left behind, I boxed every last bit of it up and shipped it to his law firm, collect on delivery.

I'd just taped up the final moving box and was about to call the agent to hand over the house keys when Liam showed up out of nowhere.

He stood on the doorstep, not bothering to step inside, and spoke in a sharp, unyielding tone, like he was giving me an order. "Mom and Dad told us to come home for dinner today."

I went quiet for a beat, then looked right at him. "Correction. They're your parents now, not mine."

Liam's face darkened even further. "We haven't gotten the divorce certificate yet. Do you have to be this mean to your elders?"

A loud buzz rang in my ears, and I could barely believe what I'd just heard.

Mean? I'd never in a million years thought the man I'd loved more than anything would ever use that word to describe me.

All the words I wanted to say got stuck in my throat, and I couldn't force a single one out.

Liam led me straight to his car.

A sticker that read "Diaia's Exclusive Fairy Princess Seat" was already plastered across the passenger seat of his car, put there by Diaia.

I froze on the spot for a beat, then pivoted sharply toward the backseat. "I'll take the back."

The whole ride was dead silent.

That had been the norm for our marriage for the past six months, anyway. Two people who were supposed to be the closest to each other were now even more distant than total strangers.

Another sharp, throbbing ache twisted through my chest, coming in waves.

We pulled up to the Smith family estate that evening.

Claire Smith kept piling food into my bowl, launching right into the same tired topic she brought up every single time we came over.

"Emma, you and Liam have been married three years already. When are you two planning to have a kid? You're a woman, there's no need to work yourself to the bone! Being a doctor is way too draining. Why don't you quit your job and focus on getting ready for a baby at home?"

I'd heard these exact same lines on repeat ever since I married Liam.

Back then, I'd bitten my tongue and put up with all of it, just to save Liam face.

But now? I set down my chopsticks, looked straight at every member of the Smith family, and spoke in a soft, steady voice. "Claire, you should save those words for Liam's next wife. I came here today to let you all know that Liam and I have already gone to the clerk's office to process our divorce."