What She Overheard in Her Own Marriage novel Chapter 366

Finnian froze. A knot of discomfort formed in his gut, but he quickly frowned in denial. "My mother would never say something like that. There has to be a misunderstanding."

"She's just a little girl, Finnian. She was terrified. She thinks we're fighting because she did something wrong."

Kaia's words tumbled out in an anguished rush, tears brimming in her eyes that she ruthlessly fought back. "She's only five years old. She should never have to hear things like that."

Finnian stared at her, swallowing hard. Finally, he murmured, "Kaia, I'm sorry. I know my mother didn't mean to hurt her."

"I don't care about your apologies. If anyone ever speaks to my daughter like that again, I swear I will ruin them," Kaia vowed, fixing him with a glacial glare.

A loud group of tourists suddenly appeared at the end of the hall. Without waiting for an invitation, Kaia brushed past him into his room and slammed the door shut.

The sound of the door slamming felt like a physical blow to Finnian's chest as he turned to watch her.

Arms crossed tightly over her chest, Kaia marched over and dropped onto the sofa.

"Brynlee has a heart condition. She cannot handle intense stress. So, you're having lunch with us today," Kaia stated her terms without looking at him.

A flicker of relief crossed Finnian's eyes. He nodded. "Alright. Fine by me."

"And to make sure she's never subjected to that kind of emotional abuse again, I'm taking full custody when we divorce. That's not a request." Kaia's tone brokered zero argument.

A mother pushed to the brink was a terrifying force of nature. In that moment, Kaia was a battle-hardened warrior, bristling with armor to shield her child.

Finnian stiffened. "If you care about Brynlee so much, why are you insisting on destroying her family? Wouldn't it be better to give her an intact home?"

"Why am I divorcing you?" Kaia scoffed at the sheer audacity of the question. "Maybe because I married a man who's emotionally cheating on me?"

Kaia sat frozen on the sofa, seemingly deaf to his words.

Finnian's gaze softened. He slowly crossed the room and stood beside her, looking down at her bowed head.

Kaia turned her face away, clearly resenting his scrutiny.

"I'm sorry I turned our marriage into this mess." A heavy note of regret coated Finnian's words. He stepped back and sank into the armchair opposite her. "I was the one who proposed. I fought my family to marry you. And yet... I completely neglected you in the process."

"Don't, Finnian. Just don't," Kaia whispered, exhausted by the sudden shift toward sentimentality.

Finnian looked at her, mildly taken aback.

A tense silence hung between them for a few seconds before he finally asked, "I just want to know... why did you say yes to marrying me in the first place?"