Three Strikes to Goodbye

Both sets of divorce agreements clearly bore both our signatures—mine and Caleb's.

I had forced him to sign them after the second time he hurt our son, but I had never gotten the chance to hand them over to the lawyer.

Later, Caleb had told me to destroy them. Though I had pretended to agree, I kept them just in case he made mistakes again. That way, I could leave him.

Now, it was time to put them to use. He had probably long forgotten they even existed.

I grabbed the papers and the suitcase and left the house I'd lived in for nearly ten years without looking back.

I thought I wouldn't hear from Caleb anymore in those final few days, but unexpectedly, he messaged me almost every single day. I couldn't figure out what he wanted, so I called him directly.

Caleb chuckled. "Missed me?"

I rolled my eyes. "What do you want? I need to take care of Tobey, so it's faster to talk on the phone."

His voice darkened. "Can't I talk to my wife without needing a reason?"

Swallowing my disgust, I asked, "Don't you need to keep Ms. Monroe company?"

Caleb fell silent for a few seconds. "I already told you that Lila and I are just friends. At most, I see her as a little sister. I don't need to keep her company all the time. You're still just jealous.

"Sienna, I've got a surprise for you. I promise you'll love me even more once you find out what it is."

I really didn't have the patience to keep up this act with Caleb. "I'm busy. Just spit it out."

Finally, after dragging it out long enough, he said, "I'll go pick you up in a few days—we're going to see Minim Orchestra's 100th-anniversary tour!"

Minim Orchestra, my favorite orchestra, was actually coming to perform in Westbridge? My heart wavered for a moment, but I only replied flatly, "I'll think about it."

After hanging up, I headed to a couture boutique. I really liked the work of their designer, Lorenzo Laurent, so I decided that while I was still in Westbridge, I'd ask him to make a few more outfits for me and Tobey.

When I arrived at the entrance, I saw Lila walking out, arm in arm with Caleb. She greeted me, "What a coincidence, Ms. Hart. You came to get clothes made, too? But Caleb booked the whole place today, so they're not taking other clients."

Lorenzo looked at me awkwardly. "Maybe you could come back another day, Ms. Hart?"

Just as I was about to leave, Lila stopped me. "Oh, how could we make Ms. Hart come back another day? Please, wait just a little bit—my girlfriends and I will be done very soon."

With that, someone pushed me into the boutique.

But Lila and her dozen girlfriends were clearly stalling on purpose. They kept changing their measurements and went over the color choices again and again. They tossed the clothes onto the couch where I sat, and someone even ordered me to fetch them tea and coffee. And even worse, someone stepped on my feet repeatedly.

Every time I tried to leave, Lila would come over and innocently ask if I was bored and tell me to wait just a little bit longer—they would be done very soon. Then, she'd go back to asking Caleb to help her pick colors.

And any time he so much as glanced my way, Lila would find new ways to pull his attention back.

She wasn't always so restless, though.

When they finally finished, Lorenzo called me over to take my measurements. As I walked past the fitting rooms, I saw Caleb and Lila locked in a passionate kiss.

A chill ran over my entire body, and I couldn't hold it in any longer.

When another one of the girlfriends stopped me to get her some water, I dumped the whole glass over her head and strode right out of there.

And with that, my resolve to leave Caleb grew even stronger.