My Husband's Affair My Anniversary Gift (Lily and David) novel Chapter 146

“Lily, I’m warning you, open this door!”

His loud voice carried down the hallway.

“What the hell is going on? Why are you disturbing everyone at this hour?” A man from the next apartment stormed out, scowling.

David froze. Then, like flipping a switch, his expression softened. He smiled politely, even put on a face of worry.

“I’m sorry,” he said smoothly. “My wife… she’s upset. She struggles with depression, anxiety, and anger sometimes. I’m just worried she might hurt herself. Last time she… cut her hand.” His voice trembled as he said it, looking like a concerned husband.

The neighbor’s anger faltered. His eyes softened. “Oh… I see. Sorry, I didn’t know. Do you want me to call the police, or...”

“No, no, that won’t be necessary,” David cut in quickly, shaking his head. “She’s just angry. I’ll calm her down. I’m sorry for disturbing you.”

The man sighed, muttered something about taking care, and retreated back into his apartment.

David turned back to the door, his voice dropping into a sickeningly sweet tone. He knocked gently this time. “Babe, open up. I said I’m sorry. Please.”

Inside, Lily’s whole body went still. Her breath caught. She couldn’t believe the lies spilling out of his mouth.

Was this really David Hardison, the man she had known for nine years as his secretary, the man she had been married to for five years? Never once had she heard him speak like this.

But instead of feeling touched, shame burned through her. The neighbors must think she was some unstable woman because of his words.

Her hands trembled as she set her bags down. Slowly, she walked back to the door.

She pulled it open just a crack, her jaw tight. “Please leave. Don’t disturb people here.”

“Then let me in.” His eyes locked on hers, stubborn, unyielding. “I won’t leave. If you don’t let me in, I’ll stay right here and keep knocking. Your neighbors will get angrier, and you know I’m not bluffing.”

Her stomach twisted because she knew, he meant it.

Closing her eyes, Lily took a deep breath, bracing herself. Then, with a resigned hand, she opened the door wide.

The door opened slowly, and David wasted no time. He slipped inside before Lily could change her mind. She clenched her fists, glaring at him as if her eyes could burn holes through his skin.

She yanked her hand once, hard enough to sting. “David, what do you actually want from me? I gave you what you wanted. You got your woman back. So why keep coming here?”

The ache in her fingers was vague and irritating, more proof of how small moments still hurt. She added, quieter now, “Please leave me alone.” It wasn’t that she feared he’d break her fingers, she had a harsher worry: complications, spite, delays in the divorce he could use to make her life harder.

David’s voice slid into sarcasm. “Why should I trust you? What if after I agree to a divorce you suddenly ask for everything? No, let’s just not sign anything. Stay married. I won’t mind.”

Lily let out a short laugh, empty of humor. Anger flared hot in her chest. David’s gaze fixed on her; his eyes darkened in a way she’d never liked, heavy, unreadable, like a storm settling in. She didn’t know what he was thinking, only that the air between them had turned dangerous.

She pulled her hand back, stepped away, and moved to the kitchen. “Do whatever you want,” she told him, turning her back. “I’m not going back to you. I lose nothing if you refuse the divorce. But you will lose, because you can’t marry that woman while still married to me. And if she or anyone comes near me to humiliate me, I’ll make sure your life collapses. You’ve only seen me calm; you haven’t seen my storm.”

Lily started preparing something to eat. She’d been busy all day; she was starving and tired. Cooking grounded her, simple, ordinary tasks that reminded her she still had a life outside him.

She moved mechanically: opened a jar, chopped, stirred. The noises kept the room from feeling too full of tension.

David’s jaw bunched. The pulse on his forehead throbbed once, twice, like someone hitting a drum under his skin. He watched her with a slow, dangerous interest, as if deciding what to do next.

“You really think threats will scare me?” he said finally, voice low. “You think I care what you do to hurt me?”