Broken Vows and Buried Twins novel Chapter 169

Celeste guided Seraphina out the door.

A heavy silence descended upon the living room.

Hester sat back down, her hand instinctively coming to rest over her flat stomach.

It was a habit she had picked up since getting pregnant. Whenever her emotions spiked, she would touch her belly, reminding herself that the baby could feel what she was feeling, and it helped ground her back to a state of calm.

It had almost become second nature.

Julian watched her soothing motion, the dark fury in his eyes faltering slightly.

Slowly, the tension bled from his face, leaving his dark eyes softer, more exhausted.

He raised a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose and let out a heavy, defeated sigh.

"Hester, I know you're upset. If you need to throw a fit or scream at me, I'll take it. But Seraphina has been through hell over the years. Is there really any need to take your anger out on her?"

Listen to him. He was so incredibly empathetic.

The hilarious irony was that he had boundless empathy for everyone in the world except the woman who had shared his bed for the last five years.

Hester's hand stilled against her stomach.

She stared at Julian. Aside from a dull, lingering chill in her chest, she genuinely felt no pain or anger anymore.

She simply sat there, staring at him with eyes that were perfectly calm and utterly devoid of warmth.

His hands curled into tight fists at his sides. Staring at the woman in front of him, that familiar, suffocating wave of panic crashed over him again.

"You've been throwing these tantrums for days just to force a divorce out of me, haven't you?"

The furrow between his brows deepened, his tone turning harsh and defensive. "I know I was wrong in the past. I can change. But I am not agreeing to a divorce. And don't forget, we signed an agreement. You aren't allowed to bring up divorce again until the baby is born."

Hester gave a soft, dismissive laugh. "I am no longer asking you to be there for me, and I no longer need your understanding. I'm asking for a divorce because I genuinely believe that continuing this marriage means living as strangers sharing a house. Instead of torturing each other, we should just walk away.

"But you think I'm just throwing a fit. You think I'm playing hard to get. If I didn't say it out loud today, you'd never figure it out. I'm not throwing a tantrum. I've just finally reclaimed my own identity. I refuse to compromise myself for you anymore. I just... simply don't love you anymore."

Julian froze. Staring into Hester's perfectly calm, entirely resolute face, the terrifying reality finally slammed into him. She wasn't just speaking out of anger.

Did she truly... not love him anymore?