I wish you well, but I'm done. She sank into a chair, the papers fluttering from her hands. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. He was supposed to be devastated, supposed to fight for her, supposed to make her feel wanted while she figured out what she really wanted. Instead, he just left.
She tried calling. Blocked. She tried texting. The messages turned green. He blocked her completely.
In desperation, she called his office. Patterson and associates. The receptionist answered cheerfully. "Hi, I need to speak with James Patterson. It's his wife.
I'm sorry. Mr. Patterson is no longer with this firm. He accepted a position in Singapore 2 weeks ago. Would you like me to transfer you to his replacement? The phone slipped from her numb fingers.
Singapore 2 weeks ago. But that was before Paris. Before everything? No. She thought back, forced herself to see past her own narrative.
The late nights he'd spent in his study. The international calls she'd heard him taking. The way he'd been distant for months, not with anger, but with a kind of quiet resignation. She'd thought she was pulling away from him, making him chase her, setting up the dynamic where she held all the power. He'd been preparing to leave all along, and she'd been too self-absorbed to notice.
Her phone rang. Her mother. Sweetheart, how was Paris? Did you post photos? I want to see.
Mom. James left me. A pause. What do you mean left you? You're the one who went to Paris with Derek.
Yes, Janet told me. Don't even try to deny it. What did you expect would happen? I expected him to to care to fight for us. Why would he fight for someone who stopped fighting for him years ago?
Her mother's voice was sharp with disappointment. That man spent 8 years putting your needs first. Your career, your friends, your preferences in everything from where you live to where you vacationed. And you repaid him by parading your ex-boyfriend around town and then jetting off to Paris while he sat home alone. It wasn't like that then.
What was it like? Explain it to me because from where I'm sitting, you threw away a good marriage because you got bored and now you're shocked that he finally realized his worth. The call ended with her mother's disgusted sigh. Over the next week, the same scene replayed with variations. Her friends, initially sympathetic, growing cooler as the full story emerged.