Seth

I took a large gulp of my Scotch after Warner left. Their solicitors firm earned every penny of their fees after saving our merger at the last minute. This was the pinnacle of our business, and this deal would ensure our billionaire status.

“Why do you work me so hard?” Saul groaned and rested his head on my couch.

“Because this is the Winthorpe legacy. Our children will be running our company one day,” I said as Gloria walked into the office with her coat on.

I looked at her sheepishly since I’d snapped at her for interrupting us earlier.

“I've left flowers and jewellery on my desk for Mrs Winthorpe. She called three times,” she said with a look of disdain on her face.

“It must be bad if you are buying both,” Saul commented, but the fact was Gloria picked them out of her own accord.

“As I tried to remind you earlier, today is your wedding anniversary. I will see you in the morning,” Gloria said with a hoity-toity sniff before she walked out of my office.

I rubbed a hand over my face before I grabbed my phone so Raymond could bring the car around.

“Who are you going to pass your legacy onto?” Saul said with a smirk on his face. “It might be a tad difficult when you keep pissing your wife off.”

I grabbed my suit jacket to put it on before checking my phone. There were six missed calls from Katya.

“This deal was the last major move we needed. I can focus more on my marriage and future children now,” I said before I stuffed some files into my case. I could look them over once Katya was asleep.

“No, now that the merger has been completed, we will implement everything we agreed to with Warner. Before you know it, you will find another amazing company. You're a workaholic,” he said as he stood up.

We were identical twins, but I was twenty-one minutes older. He was a shittier version of me, but he had a point. I kept telling myself one more deal, and then I would focus on fatherhood. I’d let Kat down too many times.

“Shit, you look as if you're about to cry. Do you want me to come with you for moral support? I can back your story up,” Saul said disingenuously.

“Stay out of my marriage, dickhead,” I snapped at him and began to walk out of my office.

I should have strangled him with his umbilical cord when we were in our mother’s womb. His laughter followed me down the corridor. My stomach lurched. The last time I felt this amount of dread was when I smashed my mother’s expensive vase. I was only seven, but I never forgot the feeling of fear waiting for my parents to come home.

What was the point of having everything if I fucked up with Kat?

Raymond was waiting for me, and as soon as I got into the car, I rang Kat’s number. It went straight to voicemail. Texting her an apology wasn't enough.

“Fuck! Ray, turn back to the office,” I said when I realised I had left her flowers and jewellery on Gloria’s desk.

That was my antagonistic brother’s fault.

I was utterly fucked .

∞∞∞

I winced when I saw the romantic dinner setting with the burned-out candles. She set it all out in our wedding colours—cream, gold, and burgundy. I’d left before she was awake this morning. The only thing she got from me was a rushed kiss on her cheek.

Our wedding date coincided with the beginning of the school term, and she was finished teaching for the summer. I'd ruined it for her rather than her break, starting on a positive note. I could count the number of times that I was late or had to cancel our plans.

I touched the burgundy napkin with intricate gold stitching around the edge. Katya always paid attention to the finest details. I glanced at the array of flowers in the bouquet and the small bag for the jewellery. When Gloria told me about them, I hadn't asked what jewellery she had chosen because I was too relieved she had bought anything, or I would have been standing here empty-handed.

We met at a fundraiser involving the local primary schools, and I didn't leave her side the entire night. She was beautiful, graceful, and charming. I instantly hated how men’s eyes lingered on her. I was as tenacious and calculated towards our courtship as my business dealings. Within two months, I had proposed, and we were married as soon as she broke up for the summer. She didn't deserve a part-time husband.

With a heavy sigh, I dropped the napkin and approached our bedroom. I had some major grovelling to do because no amount of jewellery would fix my fuck up tonight.

My heart sank when she wasn't in our bedroom. I threw everything on the bed and began to check the other rooms. I winced when I saw her in the room we had earmarked for a nursery. The room was pitch black, but for the hallway light that shone. There was enough light to see her slight body, which created a lump on the bed.

“Kat?” I whispered as I walked toward the bed.

When she didn't reply, I shrugged off my jacket and began to strip my shirt—I’d taken my tie off in the car. Once my shirt was off, I toed off my shoes and worked on my trousers. I never left my clothes on the floor but needed to get to my wife. My eyes stayed on her sleeping form, and once I was down to my boxers, I placed my phone on the bedside table.

I eased onto the bed like a ninja in the night until I could feel Katya’s warmth. She was curled into a little ball, and when I tried to put my arm around her, she jerked away from my touch.

“Get out,” she said roughly, and I turned to switch the lamp on.

I almost wish I hadn’t. Her blonde hair half covered her face, but it didn't hide her red, swollen eyes. They immediately filled with tears when she looked at me. I swallowed, remembering the tears of happiness and love on our wedding day. We had both been elated.

“Baby, I’m so sorry. Please tell me what I can do to fix this. I’m willing to do anything,” I implored, pained by the devastating sorrow in her usually bright blue eyes.

“You can grant me a no-fault divorce,” she said.

I looked at her in horror and shock.

Divorce? What the fuck was a no-fault divorce? How long had she been thinking about divorcing me?

“I’m going to stay with Eliza for a while. I only stayed tonight to tell you to your face that I want a divorce, and I will be in touch with a solicitor tomorrow. I don't want anything. I want out,” she said with a finality that shocked me to my core.

“Katya,” I began when my faculties caught up with my brain freeze.

“No, enough is enough,” Katya snapped at me in a tone she had never used before. “Get out of my room, .”

I swallowed back the urge to hold her in my arms and beg her not to leave me. Instead, I picked up my phone and walked out of the room. She needed some time, but I would try again in the morning.

I messaged Saul and told him what had happened. He phoned me immediately, and I rushed downstairs to talk to him. My parents were going to be furious. They loved Kat.

I had to save my marriage. There was no way I could lose Katya.