“Because you make it uncomfortable for him,” Demi stated. “You show resentment to my lady…”
“Don’t bring that bitch up in my house,” Lauren said. Her fuse was lit with just the notion of Charlie.
Demi set down his fork.
“This the shit I’m talking about,” he said. “He’s uncomfortable getting to know her because you’ve let it be known that you don’t like her. You got him thinking she’s the reason I’m not here.”
“Isn’t she?” Lauren shot back.
Demi sighed. “I just want to spend time with my son, Lo. Time that he doesn’t feel guilty about. You want me to miss time with our boy? You know he’s my life.”
Lauren’s eyes glossed, and Demi felt like he was looking inside a snow globe. The life they used to share was like the little village inside the dome. He craved it sometimes, the routine, the familiarity. If Lauren didn’t know anything else about him, she knew what made him comfortable. It was the reason why she made sure his food didn’t touch. She knew his preferences, his limits. She understood him, and the safety of predictability she provided was the reason why their marriage had lasted so long.
“I used to be your life,” she whispered. “How could you just box me out? You met this girl and just forgot about me.”
“I haven’t forgotten,” Demi answered. “I’ma always make sure you’re straight.”
He had been more than fair in their divorce. Lauren had walked away with every property he owned as well as a hefty settlement and a percentage of his company. She hadn’t even had to ask for it. He had given it freely because he knew what he was taking away was worth more. Her future. Her identity as a wife, ashiswife. He took away her dream but left her with a son and eight figures. He could see that even still, it would never be enough.
“Yeah, that’s what you say, but then you walk out of our home and go sleep next to another woman,” Lauren said.
Demi grimaced because that’s exactly what he would do. The routine of Lauren didn’t compare to the pulse of Charlie.
“Exactly,” Lauren said, scoffing.
Demi lifted from the table. He couldn’t give Lauren what she wanted. His heart was somewhere else. Time meant nothing when put against the right bond, and Charlie had imprinted on him the moment their paths had crossed. Hewasn’t proud of the way it had gone down, but the reality was there was no going back to the way things used to be.
“Lo.” Demi was close to desperate, but he was too proud to beg. “I love my son. Out of everybody, you know how much I love that kid.”
Her resolve softened, and she swiped at a stubborn tear. “You left us.”
“I left you,” Demi stated. “It was time. You deserve better than what I could give, Lo. When you find it, you’ll understand why I couldn’t stay here.”
“What was so bad about us? About me?” Lauren asked.
After fifteen years of marriage, Demi’s abrupt exit was one she couldn’t comprehend. She was trying. He received the therapy bills once a week, so he had proof that she was, but it was hard; for them both.
“It was me. It had nothing to do with you. You’re a great woman. She’s just…”
“The one?” Lauren finished.
Demi knew better than to answer that verbally, but his heart was an animal fighting against a cage at just the thought of Charlie. If there was ever a match to be made, she was his. Out of seven billion people on the planet, he had walked into a smoky bar and found something that made him feel. He couldn’t let it go. He wouldn’t, not for Lauren or anybody else.
“You can take DJ tomorrow and keep him the weekend. You can take him after practice. I’ll bring his bags to the field.”
The words felt like comprimise, like she had finally accepted the fact that her marriage just may be over.
Demi nodded, breathing a sigh of relief because his diplomacy was acknowledged. He was unprepared to force her hand, but he knew that would be the next step if she took it there. Being amicable was easy for him because he wasn’t the one who had been hurt. He was the perpetrator of the demise of theirmarriage. For that, he was extending more grace than he usually would.
He stood and made his way out, stopping in front of her, lingering. Guilt ate Demi alive.
“I’m sorry.”
It was the last words he said before taking her heart with him as he disappeared into the night.
Open the door; I’m outside.
The text came through at 3:52 a.m. and Stassi squinted at the bright screen.
