Minimal for Me, Everything for Her Chapter 09

Minimal for Me, Everything for Her Chapter 09

When the judge entered the final divorce decree, Adrian said nothing.

A court clerk handed him the final paperwork.

He put his pen to the page but didn’t sign.

“Mr. Keller?”

He looked up at me.

“There’s really nothing left to talk about?”

“No.”

“I’ll give you the house. The savings too.”

“We’ll follow the court’s property order.”

“I can make up for everything I never gave you.”

“Adrian, none of that was what I wanted.”

His eyes slowly turned red.

“Then what did you want?”

I looked at him.

“Four years ago, I wanted a wedding.”

“Three years ago, I wanted flowers.”

“Two years ago, I wanted you to have dinner with me.”

“One year ago, I just wanted you to remember our anniversary.”

“Then I stopped wanting anything.”

His hand began to shake around the pen.

“Why didn’t you ask one more time?”

“I asked plenty of times.”

“You were the one who kept telling me real love didn’t need proof.”

Adrian lowered his head.

Finally, he signed.

When we walked out of the courthouse, he followed me.

“Nora.”

I didn’t stop.

“You still have things at the house.”

“I don’t want them.”

“What about the wedding photo?”

“Throw it away.”

All the color drained from Adrian’s face.

“You wouldn’t let me throw it away before.”

“Before was before.”

He stood on the courthouse steps as if he suddenly had nowhere left to go.

Sienna rushed over from the other side and hurled a ring box at him.

“Take it back.”

The pink diamond rolled across the pavement and stopped beside his shoe.

“Because of you, I lost my condo and my reputation.”

Adrian didn’t pick it up.

“Those things were never yours.”

“But you gave them to me.”

Sienna laughed through her tears.

“You said Nora didn’t need anything, so I could have the best of everything.”

“Now that she doesn’t want you, you’re suddenly playing the devoted husband?”

Adrian’s face went rigid.

Sienna stepped closer.

“Didn’t you say she could never leave you?”

“Didn’t you say she’d wait at home for one night and wake up the next day like nothing happened?”

Every sentence came from the certainty he’d once had.

Now those words had weight.

Adrian bent down, picked up the pink diamond, and threw it into a trash can.

“Stay out of my life.”

Sienna froze.

“You think she’ll come back just because I’m gone?”

Adrian didn’t answer.

I was already at the curb.

He ran after me and stepped in front of the car door.

“I threw away everything she gave me.”

“Okay.”

“I gave back her key too.”

“Okay.”

“I won’t celebrate birthdays anymore. I won’t accept gifts. I won’t celebrate anniversaries either.”

I looked at him.

“That’s your life.”

“Nora, I understand now.”

“No, you don’t.”

I cut him off.

“You’ve just finally ended up standing where I used to stand.”

His lips trembled.

I opened the car door.

Adrian gripped the edge and asked quietly, “Do you think you’ll ever forgive me?”

I didn’t answer.

Before the driver pulled away, I saw him still standing there.