Chapter 2

The next morning, I woke up on my own, no alarm needed.

Sunlight poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows. I stretched and glanced at the clock. It was ten in the morning.

I hadn't slept this late in a long time.

After freshening up, I threw on a simple dress I'd bought back in college. It had been hiding at the bottom of my closet for who knew how long.

Wearing it, I suddenly felt years younger, like I was back in my college days.

Instead of calling a driver, I walked out onto the street and flagged down a cab.

"Please take me to the nearest mall," I said.

Sitting in the cab, I watched the city roll by outside the window.

I'd lived here for years, but there were so many corners I'd never truly seen. I always whisked away in the Griffin family's chauffeured rides, too busy to take in the sights.

When I got to the mall, I just wandered around aimlessly.

After getting tired, I dropped into a café and ordered a latte and a slice of cheesecake.

The cheesecake was so sweet that I almost laughed out loud.

Back when I was living with the Griffin family, I'd gone ages without sweets, always worrying about my shape.

Just as I was digging into my cake, my phone buzzed.

It was Lucas.

"Hailey, where are you?" he asked.

"Out," I replied, still savoring my cake without missing a beat.

"I'm done with work. Can you come home? We need to talk," he said.

"About what?" I asked.

"About our remarriage," Lucas replied, sounding a bit impatient. "I've already taken care of Maisie. You can get back."

Already? That was fast.

"Lucas, we literally just got divorced yesterday," I said, thinking how absurd this was.

"Exactly. That's why we need to get remarried before anyone finds out," he said.

It turned out that he wasn't even planning to announce the divorce at all.

"I don't want to talk about this right now," I said.

"Come on, Hailey, stop sulking. I know you're upset, but—" Lucas tried to reason with me.

I hung up on him.

He thought I was sulking.

Staring at my phone after the call ended, I suddenly realized how unfamiliar Lucas felt to me now.

Were all my emotions nothing more than me sulking?

My phone buzzed again; it was still Lucas, calling me once more.

I hit decline.

He tried again, and I declined it again.

On the third call, I just switched my phone off.

I went to the movie theater in the afternoon and watched a movie alone.

It was an old-school romance, totally cliché, but I still ended up with tears streaming down my face.

It wasn't the story that moved me; I was jealous of the girl in the movie who was actually cared for.

When I got back to my apartment in the evening, I saw someone standing at my door. It was Lucas.

As soon as he saw me, he jumped up. "Hailey, you're finally back. Do you have any idea how long I've been waiting for you?"

"I didn't ask you to wait," I said, pulling out my keys to open the door.

"Why did you turn your phone off? I've been calling you all day," Lucas said, following me inside.

"I just didn't feel like picking up," I replied.

"Hailey, what's wrong with you?" Lucas stared at me, confused. "Why do you seem so different?"

Different? Maybe.

"I haven't changed. I just don't want to go along with your show anymore," I said, tossing my bag onto the couch. "Lucas, just leave. I'm exhausted."

"What show? I have no idea what you're talking about," Lucas said, frowning. "Hailey, can we just have a real conversation?"

"About what? About how you dumped me for your side chick? Or about when you expect me to marry you again?" I stared him down. "Lucas, did you ever care about what I wanted?"

"I thought you'd understand me," Lucas said, his voice wavering. "You always used to be so understanding."

He was right. Back then, I always tried to understand him.

I understood that he was busy with work, that he strayed sometimes because he felt lonely, and that he needed me to go along with keeping up the Griffin family's image.

Yet now, I was done trying to understand.

"Lucas, I just want to be alone. Please, just leave," I said.

"Hailey," Lucas said.

"Just go," I snapped, my voice rising.

Lucas was stunned for a moment. He'd never seen me snap at him like that before.

"Fine, I'll go, but Hailey, this isn't over," he said, pausing at the door to look back at me. "I'm not giving up."

The door clicked shut, and the whole place went quiet.

I leaned back on the couch and stared up at the ceiling.

For the first time, being alone felt this good to me.

No one needed me to take care of their feelings, to protect their pride, and to be understanding.

I could just be myself.

And it really did feel good.