Chapter 4

But he said nothing, the silence dragging on, and Alma shot me a resentful glare before she turned and walked off.

His face flushed, Caspar tossed out two documents. One was a reinstatement form. The other had a corner sticking out, the words on it glaring: divorce papers.

Whatever was left in me went cold. Still, I made myself lift a polite little smile.

"Mr. Delgado, this is two rival companies bidding today. Poaching me like this is beneath you, isn't it? But don't worry, I'll sign the divorce papers."

"We're in the middle of a bid. Private matters can be settled privately."

I finished, ready to leave with some grace and hide the loss in my eyes.

Instead he caught my wrist.

"Sheila, are you misunderstanding something—"

A sudden knock cut him off.

"Mr. Delgado, the meeting's about to start."

He let go, irritation all over his face. "After the meeting, we're going to clear this up."

When the meeting ended, I didn't wait for Caspar. There was nothing left for us to say.

I walked out of the bidding company's building and saw Alma standing at the entrance. She was waiting for me.

Gone was the softness she wore in front of Caspar. In its place was something sharp and mean.

"The truth is, I knew Caspar was married before I came back. I just never imagined it would be you."

"Really? I thought I hid it well."

"After all, we kept the marriage a secret."

"Before I went abroad, I told him out of spite that if he left me, he'd only ever end up with someone lesser than me. Guess what Caspar said then?"

I had no desire to hear any of it, but she kept going anyway.

"He said even if he chose Sheila Winfield, he'd never come back and coax me again."

I understood what Alma meant. I was nothing more than the casualty of a fight between her and Caspar. Don't think too highly of yourself.

"You still don't know, do you?"

"He knew back in college that you had a crush on him. And he even had a few things to say about it—"

"That's enough. Either way, he and I are getting divorced."

"I wish the two of you a long and happy life together."

I cut her off and walked away fast.

Back at the home I'd shared with Caspar for two years, I sat down, took out the divorce papers on the coffee table, and signed my name. Then I called a moving company and cleared out everything of mine.

Years of loving him in silence ended right there.

On the other side of the city, Caspar was in a small meeting with the board.

The moment it was over, he pulled out his phone. On the security feed he saw the divorce papers I'd left on the coffee table, and his pupils shrank hard.

He rushed out of the company without a thought, and when he looked at the empty home, he froze where he stood.