Ex Wife's Collapse After Divorce novel Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Ethan smiled and went back to packing.

There was more than he’d expected. Five years of living in someone else’s apartment, and somehow he’d accumulated enough to fill a suitcase twice over.

By the time he zipped the last bag shut, nearly thirty minutes had passed.

He stood, grabbed the suitcase handle, and wheeled it out of the bedroom.

Vivian was sitting alone in the living room.

A bottle of whiskey sat on the coffee table, half empty. No glass. She was drinking straight from the bottle.

She heard him and glanced back. Their eyes met for half a second. Then she turned away.

Her cheeks were flushed. She’d been at it for a while.

Ethan walked to the coffee table and set the apartment key down with a soft clink.

“Key’s here. Goodbye.”

He turned toward the door without waiting for a response. The suitcase wheels hummed against the hardwood floor.

His hand closed around the door handle.

“Cough cough cough cough—”

A violent fit erupted behind him. Raw. Wet. The kind that came from drinking too fast on an empty stomach.

Ethan’s body stopped moving.

Every instinct told him to turn around. Three years of muscle memory – of rushing to her side whenever something was wrong – pulled at him like a physical force.

He didn’t turn.

Click.

The handle gave. He pushed the door open. One foot crossed the threshold.

“Ethan!”

Vivian’s voice cracked through the apartment like a whip.

Then – rapid footsteps. Almost running.

Before he could react, warmth pressed against his back. Arms wrapped around his waist from behind. Her forehead buried between his shoulder blades.

Her body was shaking.

“Don’t leave me. Please.”

Her voice had lost every trace of the woman who’d told him to hurry up and get out. No authority. No ice. Just a raw, trembling plea.

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Ethan exhaled slowly.

“Vivian. It’s over between us. Let go. Let’s both walk away with some dignity.”

Her arms tightened. Her voice came out hoarse, cracked with tears she was barely holding back.

“You promised. You said you’d be good to me forever. You can’t break that promise. You can’t.”

Something twisted in Ethan’s chest.

He reached down and pried her fingers off his waist. One by one. Firmly.

Then he turned.

He looked down at her. His eyes were flat. Empty. ‘

“Yeah. I said that.” A pause. “But you betrayed me first.”

“I didn’t!” Vivian’s mascara was already smudging at the corners. “Yes – I brought Damian into the company. But nothing happened between us. Nothing.”

“Nothing happened?”

Ethan laughed.

Maybe nothing physical had actually happened yet.

Yet.

The way things were heading, it was only a matter of time.

Was he supposed to wait until the horns were already on his head before he filed for divorce?

“Vivian.” His voice was calm. Terrifyingly calm. “Emotional cheating is still cheating. It crosses the same line. And I don’t forgive either kind.”

Vivian shook her head violently. “No – it’s not the same! I love you. My heart is with you—”

“No. You don’t.” Ethan cut her off. “If you loved me, you wouldn’t have known how much it bothered me and deliberately ignored my feelings anyway.”

“Why won’t you believe me?” Tears spilled down her cheeks. She couldn’t stop them anymore. “I told you — there’s nothing between me and Damian. Why won’t you just believe me? Why do you have to divorce me? You know I can’t – I can’t do this without you—”

Her voice broke into sobs.

Ethan looked at her red, swollen eyes. Searched inside himself for sympathy.

Found nothing. Only anger.

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