Divorce Freed Me, Condemned Him

Chapter 6

I froze on the spot, my brain going completely blank for a second.

Before I could even get a word out, Diaia came sprinting over from not far away, skidding to a stop right in front of us. She looped her arm tight through Liam's, practically hanging off him to stake her claim right in front of me. "Emma, the case is already wrapped up. What else could you possibly want to talk to my boyfriend about?"

Liam, as always, didn't say a single word to push back on her little possessive stunt. Just stood there and let it happen.

A sharp, tight twinge twisted in my chest. I bit back the words I'd been about to say, lifted my gaze to Liam, and spoke flatly. "If you have time, go ask the hospital about your physical exam results yourself."

I had zero interest in getting dragged into their messy romantic drama. I spun on my heel and started walking away.

Even with my back to them, I could still hear Diaia snapping at him, her voice sharp with irritation.

"Liam, what were you two talking about just now? Do you still have feelings for her or something?"

Right after that came Liam's exhausted, resigned response. "Diaia, can you stop being so paranoid for five minutes? I was just asking her about a few things. I don't have any feelings for her anymore, I swear."

Diaia's voice shrilled even higher, sharp enough to cut glass. "You're the one who doesn't make me feel secure! How can you blame me for being paranoid?"

Liam sounded completely worn out when he answered next. "Diaia, you've gone through my phone with a fine-tooth comb, I handed over my entire paycheck to you, and you even deleted every single female friend I had in my contacts. What more do you want from me?"

Huh. So even the perfect, lovey-dovey couple fought, too.

But Liam probably lapped up every second of this back-and-forth anyway. Just like I used to, back when I was the one bending over backwards to make things work with him.

None of that was my business anymore, though.

I picked up my pace, leaving their squabbling to fade into the distance behind me.

The next day was Saturday. I decided to head to the mall to pick out a birthday present for my best friend, whose birthday was coming up soon.

The jewelry store was packed with all kinds of shimmering, stunning pieces as far as the eye could see.

I was hunched over the display cases, focused on picking something out, when I heard Diaia's sickly sweet voice ring out.

"Emma! What a nice surprise!"

I lifted my head toward the sound, and my first thought was: great. Of all the places I could run into them, it had to be here.

There they were, standing in the store entrance, Diaia clinging to Liam's arm as they walked straight toward me.

I had no desire to get tangled up with either of them. I shifted to step around them and leave.

But Diaia stepped right in my way to block me, grinning like she had no idea how annoying she was. "Emma, Liam and I were just about to pick out wedding rings! Since we ran into each other so coincidentally, why don't you help us pick one out?"

The words "wedding rings" slammed into my chest like a cold, sharp knife, twisting hard.

Liam and I hadn't even officially signed our divorce papers yet.

And he was already this impatient to drag his new fling out to shop for wedding rings?

Did he really have zero respect left for me?

I watched Diaia's deliberate, smug display, and fought tooth and nail to keep my composure so I wouldn't make a scene. "Asking your ex-wife to pick out your wedding ring? Don't you think that's a little out of line?"

An awkward flush crept up Liam's neck, but Diaia jumped in before he could get a word out.

"Oh, it's totally fine, Emma! You have such great taste—whatever you pick will be perfect."

I darted a bitter, mocking glance at Liam.

Yeah, real great taste. I've definitely made my share of terrible calls. Case in point: picking him as a husband.

I lifted my hand and pointed straight at the 12-carat "Heart of the Ocean" diamond ring sitting right in the center of the glass display, with a seven-figure price tag.

"I think this one's amazing."

The second the words left my mouth, both their faces dropped.

Liam had just walked away from our marriage with nothing; there was no way he could afford something that expensive.

Sure enough, when he followed the line of my finger and saw the price tag, his face went rigid for a full beat.

He glared at me, his gaze as sharp as a cold arrow. "Emma, are you deliberately trying to humiliate me?"

I almost snorted out loud. These two had marched right up to me to pick a fight first, and now he was acting like I was the one being unreasonable?

I curled my hands into tight fists at my sides, eyes fixed on the floor as I spoke quietly. "Liam, you're the one who said it once, right? The person you love deserves the best the world has to offer."

He froze, his face going completely blank for a second.

Then he waved his hand sharply, as if dismissing the awkwardness of the moment, and actually pulled out his credit card.

"You're right. Diaia, I'll buy it for you!"

Diaia's eyes lit up like Christmas lights immediately. She threw her arms around him and planted a big kiss on his cheek. "Liam! You're the best!"

Their sickly sweet display had the store clerk grinning from ear to ear.

I was the only one standing there, a cold heavy weight in my chest, no trace of a smile on my face.

Liam probably didn't remember this, but he'd promised to buy that exact same "Heart of the Ocean" ring for me ages ago.

We were broke back then, so I'd told him we could wait until we had more money.

Turns out when he actually wanted to buy something badly enough, he'd find a way to make it happen, even if he didn't have the cash on hand.

It seemed the love he had for Diaia ran far deeper than any he'd ever held for me.

The man I'd loved with my whole heart had never loved me back, not really.

Just the thought of it sent a searing, ripping pain through my chest, like someone was tearing my heart out raw, leaving nothing but a throbbing, bleeding mess behind.

I couldn't stand being there for another second. I quickly told the clerk to wrap up the gift I'd picked out for my best friend, then marched straight out of the store.

But out of nowhere, I got a call from Liam later that same night.

"Emma, did you sell our home?"

His voice was thick with disbelief, slurred and slow with obvious drunkenness.

I knew he was wasted. That was exactly the tone he used to have back when he drank too much at client banquets.

I had no clue what game he was playing this time.

He'd dropped a fortune for Diaia without blinking earlier that day, so why the hell was he sloshed and stumbling back to 'our' old place that night?

But I didn't care enough to try and figure out what was going through his head anymore.

My voice turned ice-cold. "Yeah, the house was awarded to me. What I do with it is none of your business."

Liam went quiet on the other end of the line for a long moment before he spoke again. "Then where are you living now? I want to see you."

I stayed silent for a beat, then turned him down flat again. "There's no point. We'll see each other soon enough when we go to the clerk's office to finalize our divorce in a few days."

With that, I moved to hang up the call.

But Liam's voice cut through the line in a sharp, urgent rush...

"Emma, I regret it! Diaia and I aren't nearly as good a match as I thought we were. Can we... can we call off the divorce?"