“You don’t have the right –”
He cuts her off.
“You remember Judge Buckner, the guy who did our divorce?”
“Yes.”
“These days, I call him Rudy and he enjoys our tennis matches at the club. I definitely have access, you can count on that.”
She steams for a minute, and then says, “I will ruin you, Brent Marshall.”
His lips are pressed tightly together as his eyes glow with anger.
“You can try. But what does that get you? Catherine, you don’t work. Even now, I’m still paying you alimony. And I will keep doing that out of respect and love for our daughter and the grandchildren you see once a year on their birthdays. It would break their hearts to wonder why their grandmother is living in a slum. Don’t make me change the terms of that agreement because you won’t like the new terms I come up with while I’m in this mood. I can guarantee you that.”
The coldness of his voice sends chills over my skin.
“I hate you,” she hisses, the viper within finally showing itself.
“Good. Then you should want to leave my house.”
“You will rue the day –”
He turns away, his expression cold.
“Get Dr. Love to adjust your medications, Catherine, and leave now. Don’t make me embarrass the mother of my child by calling the police.”
But the blonde woman can’t be reasoned with.
“I’m going to find out who your whore is, and I’m going to—”
He whips out his phone and hits the emergency button.
“Yeah, hi, my ex-wife has invaded my home, and she won’t leave. No, I don’t have a restraining order yet, but I would like the police to come and remove her from my property. Yes, I have told her several times to leave. No, I haven’t laid a hand on her. She keeps threatening all sorts of things.”
“Fine!” Catherine screams before stomping out of his bedroom. He looks around quickly and then follows her, probably to ensure she doesn’t leave destruction in her wake. I wait to hear solitary footsteps, but the blood is throbbing in my ears and I can’t hear much of anything. Suddenly the door opens and it’s just Brent. His handsome face is torn into so many emotions that I can’t read him. To the empty space he says, “I am so sorry for everything you just heard.”
I bolt out of the closet, rush into his arms and cry. I just want him to hold me and I sniffle against that broad chest. “I’m sorry, too.”
He pulls away for a moment, his expression tender.
“What on earth are you sorry for, Jane?”
I shake my head.
“I understand if you change your mind about me and want to go back to her. I know she said some mean things, but Catherine is very beautiful.”
There’s a stunned pause.
“Are you crazy?”
“And she’s the mother of your daughter, Brent. I know a child can bond people more than a new relationship can. I don’t expect anything.”
He shakes his head.
“If anything, sweetheart, it’s me who’s worried about you taking off. I don’t want to let you go, but if you need an off-ramp out of the highway of ex-wife hell, I understand.”
We look at each other and I smile tearfully at him.
“So you’re not going back to her and you’re not through with me?”
He lets out a low growl in my ear, pulling me closer.
“So long as you can deal with life not exactly being peaches and cream,” he says. “This is my reality, honey. I’m so sorry, but I’d rather you see me in broad daylight, than to hide the bad behind all sorts of shitty lies.”
I nod and sniffle again.
“No, I get it. And I don’t want us to be apart, Brent. Crazy ex-wife or not.”
He laughs.
“Catherine tries to ruin everything good in my life, but she didn’t ruin our breakfast. I got everything into the oven in time, and it should still be warm.”
I giggle.
“Maybe you could throw her in there, too. I wouldn’t mind.”
He guffaws.
“I think my oven can’t handle something that cold being thrown into it. It might explode.”
I giggle. “Is that how ovens work? But yes, Harlow never speaks about the divorce and why you guys split.”
Brent shakes his head, his expression somber again.
“She doesn’t know, Jane, and I hope you can keep it that way. It would break her heart to know that Catherine cheated on me. She still loves her mother after all this time, and I don’t want to poison her view even now.”
I nod. “She’ll never hear it from me. My lips are sealed.”
He presses a tender kiss to my forehead.
“That’s why I love you,” he whispers throatily. “Your discretion is amazing.”
My heart leaps because did the CEO just say he loves me? Happiness flows through my veins, and I beam as he takes my hand to lead me downstairs. Once again, peace is restored, and I adore being at Brent’s side.