Chapter 4Keep It After Midnight

My vision went dark for a second.

"After that, we'd both had too much to drink. She kept using you to get under my skin, and I got worked up. I never thought things would go that far." Xavier's voice dropped lower with every word. "Yvonne, I know being drunk doesn't excuse what I did."

The tears spilled over before I could stop them.

"So you finally understand that now?"

He went still.

I wiped my face, though my fingers were shaking badly. "I couldn't bear to let you go. When she asked for you, that was the first time in twenty years I'd ever refused her, because I couldn't bear to give you up."

Every trace of color left Xavier's face. He stood there as if the words had pinned him in place, his eyes slowly reddening.

"When you said no that night, I should've stayed."

Somehow, hearing him admit it only made the pressure in my chest worse.

I turned to the drawer, took out a set of papers, and laid them on the table. I'd already smoothed every page flat and clipped a pen to the top.

Xavier stared at the cover, his breathing suddenly heavier.

"Divorce papers?"

I nodded.

He immediately shoved them back across the table. The pages scraped over the surface and bumped against the back of my hand.

"You're too worked up right now."

I watched the papers slide back toward me, feeling as though someone had hollowed out my chest.

There was even a trace of weary patience in his voice, as if he were trying to coax me out of a tantrum.

"Yvonne, don't throw away five years of marriage because you're upset."

I looked at the white-knuckled grip he still had on the edge of the table and gave a bitter laugh.

"You've spent all this time trying to find out how much I care about you."

I pushed the pen toward him.

"Now you know. It's my turn to decide what I want."

Xavier stared at me. "You're too emotional right now."

He picked up the agreement and moved it to the far end of the coffee table.

"I'll take responsibility for what happened last night. We can talk about this when you've calmed down."

The papers landed with barely a sound.

All at once, the whole thing struck me as ridiculous.

Since the birthday dinner, I'd cried, tried to stop him, and told him plainly that I wanted a divorce. Yet somehow, he still believed I was only throwing a fit.

Just then, his phone started ringing.

Tessa's name lit up the screen.

Xavier glanced at it but didn't answer. She called twice more. On the third call, an unfamiliar number appeared instead.

This time, he picked up.

A frantic voice came through the phone. "Tessa has a gastric bleed. They just brought her into the ER, and the doctor says it's serious. You need to get here."

Xavier's hand tightened around the phone.

He snatched up his car keys and headed for the door.

I didn't stop him.

Only when he bent down to change his shoes did I call his name.

"Xavier."

He looked back, impatience and worry written across his face.

"They're waiting for me at the hospital. We'll talk when I get back."

I picked up the divorce papers and set them on the entryway cabinet.

"If you walk out that door today, there won't be anything left to talk about."

His brows pulled sharply together.

"Yvonne, don't make me choose right now."

My fingers twitched.

"I'm not making you do anything."

"She's bleeding internally." Frustration crept into his voice, the tone someone might use with a child who refused to be reasonable. "You're fine here. The divorce can wait a few hours. When I get back, you can yell at me all you want."

I stared at him.

Whatever warmth I still had left for him went cold.

Then I nodded.

"Okay."

Relief crossed his face. He reached out as if to touch my hair, but I stepped back.

His hand paused before he pulled it away.

"Don't overthink this. I'll be back soon."

The door opened and shut behind him.

I went straight to the bedroom.

My ID, bank cards, and a few changes of clothes went into a suitcase one by one. His shirts were still hanging beside mine, the cuffs on one of them freshly pressed from a few days ago.

I left them exactly where they were.

When I slipped off my wedding ring, a pale band remained around the base of my finger. I set the ring on the nightstand.

The little borrowing ledger Tessa and I had kept all these years was still tucked inside the bottom drawer.

I opened it to the last page.

Item borrowed: Xavier Dalton.

Return status: Rejected.

My pen hovered over the paper for a moment before I closed the book and placed it beside my wedding ring.

I never looked back as I wheeled my suitcase out the door.

At the station, an announcement urged passengers to proceed through the gates. Just as I reached the turnstile, my phone lit up.

A message from Xavier.

[Calm down first. I'll be back soon.]

I stared at it for a moment, then powered off my phone.

The screen went black.

With my suitcase rolling behind me, I joined the crowd boarding the train and never looked back.