A hand falls into the left side of the suitcase, and the silver ring on the fourth finger stokes the anger simmering inside ofme. Without thinking twice, I lift the other side of the suitcase and bring it down on his wrist.
His loud curse is music to my ears as I turn from the bed and start grabbing clothes out of the closet. The warmth from his body hits my back a beat before he grips my arm tight enough to hurt.
“You’re not seriously going to leave, are you? What happened to for better or worse?”
“I don’t think staying with you after you’ve knocked up your assistant is included anywhere in the fine print.”
Shoving past him, I stare at the open suitcase. I drop my armful of clothes inside of it and stalk into the bathroom. My toiletry bags are under the sink, so I snatch those first and start filling them up.
“Well, it should be. I didn’t do it on purpose. I cut things off with her already, Tilly. I chose you,” he rambles.
“You smell like bullshit, Ethan. Back off, or I’ll teach you what we do with guys like you back home.”
“I’m not afraid of that. Your mother will be devastated if you leave me.”
False. “I’m sorry to tell you, but she’s always hated you. If it were up to my parents, I’d have never made it down the aisle to you.”
“What? Don’t lie to me. We’re above that.”
I have to close my eyes before they pop out of their sockets. “My dad rented me a car in his name on our wedding day so I had the option of running if I wanted to.”
“Is that why they haven’t been up here since then?” he asks, anger spiking in his voice.
“Probably.”
Honestly, it has more to do with the cost of flying all the way across the country than anything else, but I’m not going to tellhim that. He’s not entirely wrong, anyway. They’d have hated staying around him for longer than a couple of days.
“So, what, then? You’re going to fly home now? Run back to that place like it wasn’t the other way around when we met?”
“I’m not running anywhere.”
“Why are you packing, then?”
“I’m not running. I’mleaving,” I correct him.
“Where? You can’t just disappear, Tilly. We’re married.”
Closing my bags, I carry them out of the bathroom and to the suitcase. They fall on top of the clothes before I shut the entire thing. My fingers are slick with sweat when I pinch the zipper.
“For now. We’re married fornow.”
He reaches for me again, this time grabbing my hand and trying to pry it away from the suitcase. “I didn’t choose her. I chose you.”
“Are you fucking kidding me right now? Are you actually that stupid?” Tugging my hand free, I lean in close to him. Fuck, I want to slap him. “Stop touching me unless you want me to break your dick this time.”
His expression crumples slightly, backing away an inch. “You can’t hurt me just to avoid talking about this.”
“I can, actually. And I will if you don’t back off.”
With a rough exhale, I pull the suitcase onto the ground and drag it behind me out of the room. I don’t know when I’ll be back for the rest of my things, but right now, that doesn’t matter. What does is finding a hotel to stay in while looking for the best divorce lawyer in the province. Then, I can try to get myself back together. The last thing I need is to lose my head already.
The broken lamp pieces crunch under the suitcase wheels as I roll it over to the front door. My car keys are still in the lemon-shaped bowl on the console table, so I grab them with a slick hand. The glimmer of the diamond on my finger catches in the light from the window.
There’s no hesitation in me when I yank the ring off and let it ping into the bowl.
My slippers are still on my feet when I open the door and carry my suitcase onto the front stoop. The old, worn pair of cowboy boots on the inside mat are dirty from work yesterday, but I take them with me anyway.
The red coupe parked in front of the house has me moving faster, desperate to get away from here before I actually wind up doing something that will have me needing Ethan to bail me out. My suitcase clunks down the wet cement steps as I drag it behind me.
