I pulled back my bandaged hand and smiled faintly. "Ethan, how could I blame you? I was the one who trusted the wrong person."
His jaw tightened. "I've known about Nathan's bullshit for years. The way he lets Vivian walk all over you while he stands by and watches. I wanted to come find you so many times, but I was afraid you'd—"
He didn't finish. We both knew what he couldn't say. That I'd be too lovesick to listen. That I'd choose to stay strung up on a dead tree rather than walk away.
That kind of blow—he wouldn't have survived it.
Instead of finishing, he gripped my shoulders and pulled me into his arms. "Alex, from now on, I won't let anyone hurt you again. Just give me one chance. Okay?"
I closed my eyes and leaned into him, humming softly in agreement.
Maybe we were two of a kind—both broken, both forged in the same fire. I shouldn't stake my future on any man. I needed to become strong enough on my own. Strong enough to make Nathan Floyd pay for that kick.
At the hospital, Nathan held Vivian and stroked her hair, but his mind was elsewhere. That blood-soaked divorce agreement. Alex's eyes—flat and lifeless, like she was looking straight through him.
Vivian didn't notice. She was still fanning her own flames. "Mr. Floyd, she's out of control. She actually hit me right in front of you. Who knows what she'll do behind your back. And using divorce threats to manipulate you? That's textbook playing hard to get."
Nathan shoved her away, suddenly irritated. For the first time, her voice grated on his nerves.
He strode toward the elevator. "Something came up at the office. Head home without me."
Vivian stood frozen, staring at his retreating back. What the hell? Normally when she complained about Alex, he'd coo and promise to put her in her place.
Just before the doors closed, she screamed after him. "Don't fall for it! If you go soft now, she'll walk all over you. She'll take the whole company!"
Nathan stared at his phone. His thumb hovered over my number. He pressed call.
"The number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable..."
His chest tightened. The restlessness clawed at him like a caged animal.
He dialed his father-in-law.
Gerald sounded confused. "Nathan? Alex isn't here."
Then his voice soured. "What did that damn girl do now? Don't worry—when she crawls back, I'll beat some sense into her. Spoiled rotten, that one. She just needs a firm hand."
Nathan barely heard him. His mind had already drifted—back to when she was eighteen.
Thin. Pale. Standing there with her chin raised after getting slapped across the face, refusing to crumble.
His chest seized.
When he'd first seen her like that, he'd wanted to protect her. That instinct had exploded back then, sudden and overwhelming.
He'd hesitated about marrying her. Of course he had.
But then she'd thrown herself in front of that car without a second thought—shoved him out of the way and taken the hit herself.
High society ran on calculations. Everyone weighed their own benefit first. But this stupid girl had nearly died for him without blinking.
That day, he'd sworn he would protect her. He'd make her the happiest woman alive.
And what had he done instead?
He thought of the kick he'd thrown today.
Nathan slapped himself across the face.
