Chapter 3Reborn At Thirty-Five

From that day on, my mental state deteriorated. I grew so disoriented that I'd slip back into the past, thinking William and I were still married. One afternoon, I drove to his office on autopilot.

The security guard at the front desk stopped me. I just stood there, confused, not fully processing the situation.

"You say you're Mrs. Knight?" the guard scoffed. "Don't make me laugh. The real Mrs. Knight just went inside."

He gestured toward Jessica's retreating back. "See that? The boss's wife is young and beautiful. Not... whatever you are."

His voice wasn't loud, but it was enough to draw stares from passersby. Their sharp, curious glances felt like tiny daggers on my skin, making my cheeks burn with shame.

I overheard employees who recognized me whispering. "Isn't that his first wife? The one he kicked out because she couldn't have kids."

"I saw her not too long ago, she didn't look this rough. What happened? She looks like she's aged twenty years."

I scrambled to a reflective surface and stared at my reflection. They were right. The woman staring back was a ghost, a hollowed-out horror.

I fled, my heart pounding in my chest. Before I could even make sense of it all, my phone rang. It was William.

His tone was colder and sharper than I had ever heard it.

"Audrey, I heard you came by the office today."

My thoughts were a tangled mess. A wave of pathetic self-pity washed over me.

"Yes," I mumbled. "I... I just missed you."

"William, I regret it. I shouldn't have..." Divorced you.

He cut me off before I could finish.

"Audrey, I gave you everything you were owed. Do you have any idea what you're doing?" His voice was laced with ice. "My wife is pregnant. She's only six months along. You've been pregnant. You know how important it is for her to be stress-free right now."

"And what do you do? You show up at my office, making a scene. What is it? Just because you couldn't carry a baby to term, you want to make her lose hers too?"

Before I could even form a defense, he hung up.

A moment later, a text message buzzed on my phone.

[I've sent you another fifty million. Take the money and get the hell out of my life.]

The number in my bank account was a string of cold, meaningless zeros.

I covered my face with my hands, unable to make a sound.

The apartment felt like a cage. William's cruel words echoed in my head. I grabbed my car keys and drove, ending up at the first bar I saw.

And that's where I found Lucas.

Off the clock, he was dressed in a casual shirt and jeans, a lock of hair falling across his forehead, making him look even younger. He was with a group of guys who looked about his age. They were all chattering away, but he sat in the middle of it all, silent and still.

I don't know what possessed me, but my feet started moving on their own.

I had barely reached their table when one of his friends spoke up, his eyes glinting with amusement. "Ma'am, can we help you?"