“A five-month affair wasn’t somemistake, you arsehole. Everything you did was intentional. Youchoseto lie and deceiveme. Youchoseto sleep with another woman. Youchoseto keep going back to her, time and time again. And youchoseto keep your affair a secret—long after it ended.
“You hid things from me for months. You deleted messages. You met her in secret, at carefully chosen times and places. Those weren’t slip-ups, Adrian. They weren’t accidents. They were choices you made willingly.”
“How can I make this right? I don’t want to lose you. I don’t want to lose Zac. Please, Hope. Tell me what I can do.”
“I want you to leave. I want you to leave this house. Find somewhere else to stay tonight, because I can’t be under the same roof as you right now.”
“Where am I supposed to go? We have no family here.”
“And whose fault is that? You were the one who decided to move us here. Come to think of it, it all makes sense now—why you were so eager to leave Sydney in such a hurry. She told you she was pregnant, and you panicked. So you ran. You packed up our lives and disappeared so no one would find out.” I lean forward, my palms gripping the edge of the table so tightly. “Tell me. Is the baby yours?” I ask, my voice shaking with fury.
“I honestly don’t know. All I do know is that I wasn’t the only man she was sleeping with.”
“Of course you weren’t. Because she already had a boyfriend.”
“How would you know that?” he asks, curiously. “Wait, was he the one who gave you that file?”
“This file was put together by a private investigator.”
“You had a PI follow me?”
“Again, not important. What is, though, is that I now know everything.”
“What are you going to do? Are you going to leave me?”
“All I know right now is that I need you gone, so I can think about what my next steps are.”
“Please don’t leave me. I beg you. I don’t want to lose you. I can’t live without you in my life.”
“You should’ve thought of that before you decided that another woman’s attention, was worth more than the hurt you’ve caused this family.”
“It wasn’t worth it. None of it was. I fucked up, and I’m so sorry. But I’m not giving up on us, Hope. I’ll give you space for now, but mark my words, I’m going to make this right. Even if it takes me years to rebuild your trust.”
“I will never trust you again, Adrian. You can pray for forgiveness if you want, but you’ve destroyed us, and that damage can’t be undone.”
“No, I don’t believe that. We love each other too much to just give up. Give me time, baby. I’ll show you I’ve changed. I’ll never hurt you again. I promise you.”
“I don’t think I have it in me to try. I’m sorry. I need you to pack your things and leave now. I’ll call you to arrange a time to see Zac. But you need to give me some space.”
He nods slowly, as if willing to let it go for now, but I know deep down he isn’t finished yet. I know he’ll be back—pleading, begging for me to let him come home. But there’s no chance of that happening. I won’t give him another chance to hurt us.
By the time I call him to collect the rest of his things, Zac and I will already be gone—back to Sydney, back to our home, where we’ll be surrounded by the people we trust and love.
And as for Adrian, I don’t care what he does from here on out, because if there’s one thing I know for certain, it’s that I will never let him or another man make a fool of me ever again.
Chapter 14
Hope
I watch as my mother smooths the fitted sheet over the guest bed mattress, the same way she did hundreds of times when I was a little girl. It’s been less than twenty-four hours since I packed up my and Zac’s belongings, loaded them into my SUV, and drove two hours away to Sydney—back to my parents’ home.
My phone hasn’t stopped blowing up with calls and messages from Adrian, all of them unanswered. I left him a note on the kitchen island just before we left, letting him know we’re heading back to Sydney to stay with my parents, and that was more than he deserved.
If Zac weren’t in the picture, I would have happily left him high and dry and never contacted him again, but life is never that simple. Not when you share a child together. So, a note would have to do.
If he wants to continue living in Sandy Vale, he’s welcome to. After all, we only moved there because of him. Now that heand I are over, there’s no reason for us to stay in that horrible town any longer.
Ideally, I would have loved to move back into our old house. But since we put it up for lease, our tenants will be there for another two months. In the meantime, my parents have offered us their guest rooms until Zac and I can return to our old house—the one I inherited from my late Aunt Amber.
