Chapter 3 THREE WEEKS AGO

Seraphina barely made it to the elevator before she froze.

The doors slid open, ready, waiting, but she turned back instead.

She should've kept walking. Every sensible part of her screamed to leave, to get to her car, find some place she could finally breathe, and just refuse to waste another second on Lucian. But her feet took her back to the suite. One thing still burned in her mind, and she just had to know.

Three weeks.

Lucian had the divorce papers drawn up three weeks ago.

That mattered. Because three weeks ago, he was still her husband.

Back then, he kissed her goodbye before leaving for work. That night, she called to tell him she'd found the perfect watch for their anniversary, so excited to surprise him. He'd told her he was exhausted, promised they'd make the anniversary special, just the two of them.

He knew. The whole time, he knew.

She pushed open the suite door.

Lucian was by the window, staring somewhere far away. Vivienne was gone. For the first time all night, it was just the two of them.

He looked over, his voice flat. "You came back."

Seraphina lifted the papers.

"You had these prepared three weeks ago."

"I know."

"You knew you were leaving me."

"Yes."

His calm hit her like a punch. She stepped forward, closing the door behind her.

"Why didn't you just tell me?"

"I wasn't ready."

Seraphina stared, almost in disbelief. "You weren't ready?"

"I didn't know when the right time was."

She let out a small, humorless laugh. "The right moment."

Lucian just watched her.

She set the papers on the table. "Was there ever going to be one?"

"I meant to tell you," he said.

"When?"

"Soon."

"Before or after our anniversary?" She just needed him to say it, but his silence said enough.

She nodded. "So you were going to let me spend tonight celebrating a marriage you'd already decided to end."

"I didn't know how to say it."

"But you knew how to get the paperwork done." Her voice wobbled, and she tried to hold it steady. "You hired lawyers. You reviewed everything. You signed where you needed to sign. You brought the documents tonight."

Her voice trembled. "You knew exactly what you were doing."

Lucian looked out the window.

Seraphina kept her distance, but her eyes stayed on him. "Was the anniversary dinner real?"

He frowned, "What?"

"This dinner. This suite. The reservations." Her chest tightened. "I planned tonight for you. I spent weeks trying to make you happy. I thought your late nights were for me, making things perfect."

She looked around at all of it. "But all the while, you were preparing to end this."

Lucian didn't answer. That silence twisted inside her.

"Was any of tonight real to you?"

He shook his head. "It wasn't about the anniversary."

"Then what was it?" she pressed.

"I needed to talk to you."

"You had five years to talk to me."

Their eyes met.

"Things changed," he said quietly.

"When?"

No answer.

She stepped closer, her voice sharp. "When did I become someone you couldn't love?"

"That's not what I said."

"You don't have to." She pointed at the divorce papers. "You said it already."

His jaw tightened. "You weren't happy, either."

Her mouth tightened. "Did I ever tell you that?"

"You didn't need to."

"No." She shook her head. "You don't get to tell me how I felt."

"I saw how distant you were," he shot back.

"I pulled away because you pulled away first." Everything came rushing out now, faster, louder. "I waited for you. I begged you to come home. I asked over and over if something was wrong, if there was someone else-"

Lucian just stood there.

"Every time, you told me I was imagining things."

She blinked hard. "You made me feel crazy for seeing what was happening."

For a half-second, his face softened, and she thought he might apologize.

He didn't. Instead, he said, even quieter, "You were the only one who still believed we had a future."

His words knocked the breath out of her. She stopped cold.

No response came. She'd always known she was the one fighting hardest, she just never realized Lucian noticed.

She looked down. Her hands squeezed the papers.

"I see."

Lucian took a step toward her. "Seraphina-"

"Don't." She turned away. He didn't get to see her cry, not here, not now. Not after everything.

She pulled in a shaky breath. "I spent five years thinking we were building something."

Now her voice barely made a sound.

"I just didn't realize I was building it alone."

Lucian's face twisted. "That's not fair."

"Fair?" she shot back, finally meeting his eyes. A tear slipped loose-she wiped it away instantly.

"Was it fair when you lied about coming home? Was it fair when you let me plan this stupid anniversary? Was it fair to watch me love you when you'd already decided to leave?"

He just watched her.

That was her answer.

She picked up the papers.

"You don't have to sign tonight," he said gently.

"I know."

"I'll... I'll have my lawyer contact yours."

"I'll find my own."

He frowned, maybe a little insulted. "You don't need to make this harder."

She stared right at him, not backing down. Some part of her went still, almost calm for the first time.

"You already did that," she said. "I just won't make it easy."

Seraphina walked toward the door. Almost there, she hesitated. One question kept gnawing at her-the one thing she was scared to ask, because the truth might break her.

She turned.

Lucian silently watched her.

"Tell me one thing." She tried to keep her tone steady.

He waited.

"Why did you marry me?"

Something flickered across his face. Pain? Guilt? She couldn't tell.

Lucian glanced away. "It's complicated."

Her lips twisted into a bitter smile. "Everything with you is complicated."

She opened the door. She already had a foot in the hallway when she heard him say, "Seraphina."

She stopped. Didn't turn.

Silence, then Lucian's voice, low, almost a whisper. "I did love you."

Her grip tightened on the handle. Those words should've helped. Instead, they scared her.