I quickly glance towards the kitchen, worried Zac might be watching us argue. Thankfully, he’s not.
“Keep your voice down,” I whisper sternly.
He points a finger in my direction. “You think you can just replace me by playing house with Kaden?” He laughs, the sound cold and unhinged. “You think you can erase me from my son’s life like I don’t exist.”
I slap his finger away, and his arrogant smirk instantly returns.
“It’s never gonna happen, Hope. I’ll always be around, whether you like it or not.”
“You’re fucking insane, you know that?”
“And you’re in fucking La-La land,” he quips. “Time to wake up, though—nothing is ever what it seems. Not when it comes to men like him.”
“Oh, I know. I learned that the moment I found out you were fucking another woman behind my back—and the reason why I’llnevertrust you again.”
He sneers with a low, venomous chuckle. “Well, seeing you’ll never trust me again, there’s no point of hiding anything from you anymore.”
I swallow as my stomach knots with anticipation at what he’s about to reveal.
He regards me with an almost cruel, mocking smile, leaning in until his mouth brushes the shell of my ear.
Just when I think he can’t hurt me anymore, his hot breath brushes my skin as he whispers, “Lucia wasn’t the only one.” His cold words slam into my chest, forcing me to take an unsteady step back.
My throat tightens as I struggle to push out my next words.
“What did you say?”
“I said, Lucia wasn’t the only one I had an affair with. She just happened to be the last. Right before you up and left me.”
Tears gather quickly behind my eyelids as I look back at the man I once devoted my entire life to—now confessing that he betrayed me not just once, but repeatedly throughout our marriage. I’ve never despised someone as deeply as I despise him in this instant.
“You fucking bastard! You lying piece of shit! Get out of my house!” I yell, my voice shaking with hurt and rage. “Get out, Adrian!”
“You wanted full honesty, so here it is. I was never faithful to you, and for that, I’m sorry. But the urge to sleep with other women was just too strong.”
He draws in a sharp breath, and I can feel that what he’s about to say will carve a permanent scar into my soul. “I know this will hurt to hear… but that desire became much stronger than my love for you.”
My cheeks are streaked with tears as his words slice through my chest like jagged little daggers.
He never truly cared. He never loved me enough to stop. His desire to sleep with other women far outweighed any love he had for me, for his family. I feel sick to my stomach. I feel utterly disgusted.
“I wish I’d never given you a second chance all those years ago. I wish I’d never fucking met you! Get out, Adrian! Get out of my fucking face!”
Just then, Zac charges towards me, his arms circling around me protectively, his eyes blazing at his father with a fierceness far beyond his nine years.
“Get away from her!” he shouts at Adrian. “Go! We don’t want you here anymore!”
“Zac, you don’t mean that?” Adrian murmurs, his voice softening in an instant.
“Yes, I do! I don’t want you here. I hate you! I want you out of my life—out of Mum’s life too!” He’s yelling so loudly that his small body trembles. I gently squeeze his shoulders, trying to calm him, but he only tightens his arms around me even more.
“Just leave, Adrian. You’ve said what you needed to say. Now leave us alone.”
He shakes his head in protest, his eyes darting between Zac and me. Then, suddenly, as if the mask has finally slipped, a low, cutting laugh escapes him.
“I knew you’d eventually turn him against me. This was your plan all along.”
“I didn’t do anything,” I state firmly. “The way he feels about you is a direct result of how you’ve treated him. How you’ve treated us. You did this all on your own.”
