Chapter 2 Divorce Ever since our wedding , Elizabeth had used her Buddhist practice as a reason to keep me out of her room at night .
Even on the sixteenth of each month , the only time we were allowed to be intimate , once it was over , I was expected to change the sheets and leave .
But now , it hit me every rule and boundary shed drawn had .
always been aimed at me and me alone .
At that moment , pain swallowed me whole .
My hands and feet went numb , and the feeling quickly spread until I couldnt feel anything at all except my heart like it had been stabbed a thousand times over .
Elizabeth still didnt bother to explain .
Instead , she turned cold and snapped , Who told you to come in without knocking ? What happened to basic respect ? Get out of here ! I pointed at myself , glanced at Callum , and couldnt help but feel how ridiculous it all was .
My own wife lets a man stay the night , stands there in nothing but a towel while he dries her hair like its the most normal thing in the world … and I , her legal husband , need to knock just to come in ? Elizabeth , its clear you dont just disregard me .
You dont care about our marriage either .
Chapter 2 Divorce Swallowing my pride , I said , Elizabeth , lets get a divorce .
I had completely given up on her .
2/7 Wed been married five years .
No matter how cold or unreasonable Elizabeths requests had been , Id always gone along with them .
Id gotten used to treating her gently , and this was the first time Id ever spoken to her like that .
Divorce ? Just because of this ? Elizabeth repeated , stunned , her expression softening .
She shook her head , instinctively resisting .
No.
I dont agree to a divorce .
Her firm refusal caught me off guard .
Id assumed her thing with Callum was already a done deal and she was just waiting for me to back out .
But the way she rejected it so flat out , I couldnt help but wonder if she still wanted to hold onto me .
Five years of sincere devotion made me want to give Elizabeth the benefit of the doubt .
But her next words sent me crashing straight into hell .
Ive made a vow to stay focused on my faith right now .
Getting divorced would go against that , she said without blinking .
You can bring it up after its done .
Her words were stiff and sharp , and her face might as well have been carved from marble .
So it really was just me holding onto a fantasy .
I let out a bitter laugh , the pain in my chest so sharp it made me sick to my stomach .
I finally understood that in Elizabeths eyes , I wasnt even a Chapter 2 Divorce es to to adues 3/7 husband .

Hell , I barely qualified as a person .
After five years of marriage , I didnt even have the right to bring up divorce .
I , a living , breathing human being , would always come second to her rituals and rules .
Callum looked between us before saying , Im sorry , Elizabeth .
Dont let whats going on with me and the kid be the reason you leave Mr.
Thornton .
I dont want to ruin your marriage .
If Id known this would happen , I wouldnt have stayed .
Gideon , get dressed .
We shouldnt be here .
With a sigh of regret , he picked Gideon up and got ready to leave .
I shut my eyes , done with this little performance of theirs .
Callum isnt wrong .
They really dont belong here .
This is my home one I poured five years of compromise and effort into .
And now he gets to just swoop in and take it over ? Like hell.
But to my surprise , Elizabeth stepped in to stop Callum .
Gideons stuff is all unpacked already .
Theres no reason for you to leave .
Stay .
This is between me and him anyway .
It has nothing to do with you or the kid .
Then , she turned to me with a scowl .
The one who should be leaving isnt him , its you .
Gideon is just a kid .
Cant you be the bigger man ? Do you really have to back them into a corner like this ? Every word out of Elizabeths mouth cut straight through me Chapter 2 Divorce like a blade .
4/7 So now Im the one pushing them into a corner ? What else am I supposed to do ? Stand by clapping while you two get cozy under my roof ? I wanted to scream at Elizabeth , but the coldness on her face made it all feel pointless .
Thats enough .
This marriage is already over .
No sense dragging out something that stopped making sense a long time ago .
With that thought , I walked away in silence .

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I went back to my room and began packing .
Funny thing Id been married five years , but never really bought anything for myself .
Everything I had , every bit of effort , went into Elizabeth and this house .
In the end , all I had to my name was a single small suitcase , packed and zipped within the hour .
There was nothing left of me in that room .
Just like that , the five year marriage came to an end .
Before leaving , I left behind a letter of farewell .
Actually , there wasnt much I wanted to say .
I just told her to meet me at the courthouse next Monday .
But the moment I opened the door , I saw Elizabeth standing right outside .
Her eyes immediately narrowed the second she saw me dragging a suitcase , Where are you going ? she asked , frowning .
Chapter 2 Divorce Im getting out of your way .
Were done , I replied flatly .
5/7 I stepped past Elizabeth , ready to leave , but she blocked my path and shoved me back inside .
Stop it , Julian .
Gideon is still here .
Are you seriously going to blow this up in front of him ? When I told you to leave , I meant to go back to your room .
Not pack up and disappear .
The room was nearly empty , so the letter stood out right away .
She spotted it instantly and walked over .
The second Elizabeth read what was written , she tore the letter up without hesitation .
Her face twisted in rage as she glared at me .
Let me make myself clear again , Julian .
I do not agree to a divorce .
If you dare bring it up again , you know whatll happen ! I felt completely gutted .
My chest tightened with frustration , and I couldnt help but laugh bitterly as I retorted , What ? Are you gonna break one of your precious commandments ? But when you were lying in Callums arms , wrapped in nothing but a towel , letting him dry your hair … when you decided to play mommy to his kid , did your Buddhist vows mean anything then ? Did you even think about your Buddha ? Before I could say more , Elizabeths expression darkened , and she slapped me hard .
Shut up ! she shouted .
You have no right to speak of the Buddha with such disrespect ! I never thought shed hit me .
For a second , I just stood there , stunned .
Wed been married five years , and even if there was no Chapter 2 Divorce 6/7 love between us , wed always kept things civil .
Never once had it gotten this ugly .

But that one slap ended everything we still had between us .
Elizabeth , I said , voice low , if you need a reason , then fine .
Lets just say I couldnt stand your rules anymore .
Lets just end this without making things even uglier .
We are husband and wife , after all .
No need to turn it into a war .
My resolve seemed to shake Elizabeth .
Her icy expression wavered just a little .
I shouldnt have slapped you , she said .
Im sorry .
But you know how important this is to me .
Why would you go out of your way to provoke me on something like this ? I scoffed at her twisted logic .
If thats what you believe I was doing , Im not going to argue , I replied , throwing her own .
words back at her .
Elizabeth blinked , clearly irritated .
Why is it so hard for us to just have a little trust , Julian ? I practice Buddhism .
We dont lie .
I told you I wouldnt betray this marriage , and I meant it .
Why do you always have to fight me on everything ? I kept my face expressionless as I said , Just cutting my losses , thats all .
Elizabeth let out a shaky breath , exasperated , and yanked my suitcase from me .
Go wherever you want .
But I still wont agree to a divorce .
With that , she turned and walked away .
Only then did I realize how deeply I was hurting .
I was shaking Chapter 2 Divorce 7/7 all over ; my chest felt crushed under a weight I couldnt lift .
It was like someone had reached inside and gripped my heart with an iron fist , squeezing until I couldnt breathe .
Does Elizabeth really think just because she took my suitcase , Id have no choice but to stay ? Shes wrong .
Its just some clothes and basic stuff anyway .
Id rather replace them than stay here another minute .
So , I left .
But no sooner had I walked out than my phone rang- it was the station .