Divorced CEO's Forgotten Wife Strikes Back (Riley and Bryce) novel Chapter 45

**TITLE: Dreams Refuse Gravity by Leo Arden Knox**

**Chapter 45: She Was Actually Done With Him**

Bryce’s complexion drained of color as a wave of memories crashed over him, dragging him back to a time when he was just a penniless kid, the target of mockery and disdain. He could still hear the laughter, the whispers that followed him like shadows.

It was Riley who had seen through the facade of his poverty, who had respected him when no one else dared. She had been the lighthouse in his stormy sea, the beacon that rekindled his self-worth.

When he had knelt down and proposed, it felt like he was clutching a lifeline; she was his escape from the suffocating depths of despair.

“If it’s not about Sebastian, then what is it? The hundred million dollars my mother promised you?” Bryce’s eyes locked onto hers, a mix of desperation and confusion swirling within him as he awaited her response.

Riley’s voice was unnervingly steady. “I’m exhausted, Bryce. Three years of this marriage have drained everything out of me. Whatever feelings I once had for you have vanished completely. I want a divorce.”

Her tone was devoid of emotion, her expression as blank as a canvas waiting for a brushstroke. Even the way she regarded him felt hollow, as if she were gazing through him rather than at him.

Yet, in the midst of the emotional storm, Bryce felt his heart begin to race, an involuntary reaction that coursed through his veins like wildfire. Panic surged from his chest, radiating outward, and cold sweat formed on his palms, slick and clammy.

You don’t… you don’t have feelings for me anymore. His internal voice trembled, though he was blissfully unaware of the quiver that had crept into his words.

“That’s right, I don’t feel anything for you anymore,” Riley stated bluntly.

In an instant, Bryce’s expression twisted into something dark and ugly. “Is this all because of what Mom and Claire did? Sure, they plotted against you, but weren’t you playing your own games too?”

“How else could you have secretly filmed everything without them knowing and then broadcast it on the ballroom screens? You didn’t have to go that far. You could have told me earlier, and we wouldn’t have reached this point,” he snapped, letting his frustration spill over like a shaken soda can.

“I called you,” Riley interjected, her voice suddenly cutting through the tension.

“What?” Bryce’s body froze, disbelief washing over him.

“When your mother and sister first initiated their underhanded scheme against me, I reached out to you. If you had only picked up, I wouldn’t have resorted to those drastic measures. Perhaps things could have turned out differently. But you didn’t answer.” Her voice remained unwavering, a stark contrast to the turmoil swirling inside him.

Bryce’s body turned rigid, the memory surfacing like a ghost. He recalled that moment before the ballroom screens displayed the footage; Riley had tried to reach him. He had dismissed her call, convinced it would lead to drama, especially with Bella right beside him.

If I had answered that call…

A wave of regret crashed over him, heavy and suffocating.

“Riley, I didn’t know that was… I was preoccupied with other matters at the time, so—”

“You ignored my call because, deep down, you never truly cared about me,” Riley interrupted, her tone icy. “My calls were insignificant to you. That’s why your family never respected me.”

“I’m sorry. I truly am.” He found himself repeating the words, desperation spilling from his lips.

But her face remained a mask of calm indifference. “Even without what happened yesterday, I don’t have feelings for you anymore, Bryce. Let’s just end this and move on with our lives.”

She spoke as if discussing the weather, casual and detached.

The more composed she became, the more pathetic he felt, a sinking sensation in his gut.

How could she talk about divorce so nonchalantly? How could she dismiss their three years of marriage as if they were nothing but a fleeting moment?

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