Chapter 6

I spent a week recovering in the hospital.

My mom did everything she could to take care of me, while my dad, never much of a talker, came by every day just to sit with me in silence.

The warmth of home slowly pieced back together the heart that had been torn apart by everything I went through on that island.

As my body started to recover, the thoughts in my heart became sharper and more determined.

It was time to end this crazy mess of a marriage.

I asked my dad's lawyer to draw up the divorce papers.

The terms were simple. I gave up any claim to our shared assets, not that there was much to divide. His income from the site barely registered compared to mine. All I wanted was a clean end to the marriage.

Clean and simple.

The day the lawyer brought the papers over, the weather was perfect.

I sat in the sunlit conservatory at home, carefully reading through the agreement. Then, at the end, I signed my name.

No longer Richard Campbell's wife. I was just Natalie Summers.

The pen glided softly across the paper, the sound like a silent farewell ritual.

The afternoon after I signed the papers, I got a call from Tom.

"Ms. Summers, Mr. Campbell is here at the gate. He's asking to see you," Tom said, his voice sounding a bit uneasy.

"He's pretty worked up. The security guards are trying to keep him out, but he won't leave."

He showed up faster than I expected.

Blocking and deleting him finally made it clear to him that this was not something he could talk his way out of.

I set down the fashion magazine I'd been flipping through and said calmly, "Let him in. Have him wait for me in the living room."

"Natalie, is that him?" my mom asked, coming out of the kitchen with worry written all over her face. "Do you want your dad to talk to him?"

"No, Mom," I replied, getting up and smoothing out my loungewear. "This is my business. I'll handle it myself."

I had to face this.

When I walked into the living room, Richard was standing with his back to me, right in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows.

He had changed out of his work-issued gear and into a suit, holding himself stiffly.

Even from behind, his whole stance radiated obvious anxiety and exhaustion.

At the sound of my footsteps, he spun around.

It had only been a few days, but the change was unmistakable, with dark circles under his eyes, rough stubble along his jaw, and a visible air of exhaustion.

He marched right up to me, his voice tight with anger, like he was here to scold me.

"What the hell is going on with you?" Richard barked, his voice tight with frustration. "You won't pick up my calls, you ignore all my messages, and you even blocked me everywhere. Do you have any idea how long it took me to find you?"

I didn't respond. I just met his gaze with a calm, unreadable expression.

My calm composure seemed to frustrate him even more. He drew in a deep breath, struggling to keep his temper in check, and his gaze shifted to my belly, his voice finally losing some of its edge.

"Where's the baby? How is the baby? I called the doctor on the island. He told me you'd already left. How could you just leave the island without authorization? Do you have any idea what kind of trouble you're in for breaking protocol?"

Even now, the first thing Richard cared about was his beloved protocol.

I curled my lips into a mocking smirk.

"Mr. Campbell, this isn't your island. Out here, I don't have to play by your rules anymore," I said, my voice cold.

I walked over to the couch, picked up the divorce papers I'd left there earlier, turned around, and handed them to him.

"Sign it," I said to Richard, my voice cold and resolute.