The Arrogant Young Lady’s Awakening Chapter 06

The Arrogant Young Lady’s Awakening Chapter 06

Night wind swept down off the harbor. 

Adrian’s footsteps stopped dead. 

I dropped my head, fighting to keep tears from falling. 

“Find some time. We’ll go file the paperwork.” 

“As soon as possible.” 

I’m letting you go. 

I won’t drag this out anymore. 

I don’t want us to end up the way the comments said- 

both of us hating each other. 

But Adrian’s expression wasn’t relieved. He looked, if 

anything, like he was running. He just dropped one line 

“I’ve been busy.” 

“Let’s both cool off first.” 

and walked away. 

I tilted my head, baffled. 

He’d just gotten what he should’ve wanted most. Why 

hadn’t he leapt at it? 

I turned back to the gift bag he’d left behind, the one with the blue ribbon on the handle. 

I opened it. 

Inside was a stunning diamond necklace. 

Identical to the one Adrian had bid on at the auction. 

Brilliant stones. Light fracturing across every facet. 

I stared. 

So… it had been for me? 

The comments stampeded across my vision. 

“Side chick’s flattering herself again.” 

“Adrian actually went to find Pearl???? That wasn’t in the original story!!!” 

“What does this mean? Is he worried about her?” 

“No way. Doesn’t he hate her most?” 

“Maybe he’s afraid she’ll go after Vivienne. He’s just feeling her out.” 

“Yes yes yes, that has to be it. He’s worried Pearl will 

hurt Vivienne, so he’s testing the waters.” 

“My poor Adrian, dragged through years of 

harassment and now he has to grovel to her face.” 

“Boohoo, Adrian’s such a good man, willing to face that lunatic just to keep his girl safe.” 

My face went white. 

Right. Of course. 

Before, anyone who got within arm’s reach of Adrian, 

I’d torn the place apart. 

He hadn’t come for me. 

He’d come because he was afraid I’d hurt Vivienne. 

Hurt the woman he loved. 

That’s why he came in the middle of the night. To 

check on my state. 

Adrian. You really are… thorough. 

I laughed at myself. Closed the door. Curled back into 

the couch. 

The TV was playing some old movie. I wasn’t watching. 

My head was a mess. One second, the comments were 

there, mocking me, calling me delusional. A clown. 

The next, I was seeing Adrian’s back as he practically 

fled. 

Moonlight spilled through the window. I buried my 

face against my knees. 

I suddenly remembered our first year of marriage. I’d been snooping in his study and found a book. On the inside cover, in pencil, he’d written one line. 

“The bright moon in the sky. Visible. Untouchable.” 

It clicked. 

Bright moon. Someone gentle as moonlight. 

Wasn’t that exactly Vivienne? 

Every clue led to the same conclusion. 

The bandage on my arm started throbbing again. 

The dark, cavernous house pressed in around me. I 

dragged the blanket over my head and curled up small. 

I whispered to no one: 

“Adrian. This time, I really don’t want you anymore.” 

That night, I dreamed about the summer I turned 

eighteen. 

The day I first met him. I was wearing a red dress that 

summer. Loud and burning, like fire. I’d stared at him 

without looking away. I’d smiled until my eyes 

crinkled. 

But this time, the dream version of me didn’t loudly 

announce, in front of everyone, that she would have 

him. 

Because three years of failed marriage had taught me 

one thing. 

You can’t force a fruit to be sweet by twisting it off the 

branch. 

Some people, you can’t earn through sheer effort. 

A tear slid down the side of my face. I turned over 

restlessly in my sleep. 

In that hazy half–conscious place, I thought I heard someone whispering by my ear: 

“He’s going home to get married. Does it really hurt 

you that much?” 

After that, only sighing. One sigh after another.