Divorced, Broke, and Back as His Perfect Wife novel · Chapter 12 of 24

Chapter 12: The Tea Room

I went to lunch with Bree because I wanted to see which version of herself she would bring.

She picked a tea room on Main Street with white tablecloths and a waitress who knew her name.

"I ordered for both of us," she said. "I hope that's okay. The chicken salad is wonderful."

"That's fine."

She waited until the food came before she took out her phone.

"I wasn't going to show you this," she said, in a small, sad voice. "I think you need to see it."

She slid the phone across the table.

It was a thread of messages with Brennan, scrolled to the top and then down.

The first ones were from two years ago. I read them with a steady face. Hello. Can't stop thinking about you. Are you free after the board meeting?

The dates were all from the years I had been home making his dinner.

"I know all of that," I said. "He told me."

"Keep going."

I scrolled to the bottom.

The last message was from Brennan, sent the night before our wedding. It said: It's only for the deal. You know that. It's always been you.

I read it twice.

My throat closed, and I put the phone down on the cloth, very evenly.

"He tells me everything," Bree said gently. "He told me about the terms. He told me he'd keep you at arm's length. I think he's confused, Lena. I think he feels guilty, and guilt feels like love for a little while."

I said nothing.

"I'm not saying it to hurt you. I'm saying because I was you. He did this to me, too. He told me he was leaving you for a year before he did."

"Thank you for showing me," I said.

I meant it. I wanted to remember exactly what the message said.

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