Chapter 22
Gemma
Moving forward? Is he entirely dense?
Mindful of his warming, I keep my voice low, but I still say, “Once we’re divorced, I won’t care how they talk about me.”
The car pulls around before he can say anything else, and I get
inside.
He climbs in as well. As we pull away from the mansion, I say, “Just drop me on the side of the road somewhere. I’ll get a taxi to
Zina’s.”
His teeth flash and he says in a low growl, “How long are you going to stay with her?”
“Until I get my own place,” I snap back. “Can you stop the car
now? This is a good place to hail a taxi,” I say.
Cassian slams on the brakes and pulls over to the sidewalk
without a word.
“Thanks,” I say. “I’ll have the dress cleaned and return it to you.”
“Throw the dress away if you don’t want it,” he snarls.
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Chapter 22
“Fine!”
I can sell it. The dress has to be worth at least five thousand
dollars.
I grab the door and get ready to slam it. Right before I do, I say, “Don’t forget your promise about Seaside Manor.”
I shove the door shut and walk away. I can practically feel Cassian seething with rage behind me. He hits the gas and the tires squeal as he drives away.
Unfortunately for him, I don’t care.
I walk home to blow off steam instead of hailing a taxi. It’s cold, so
I pull on the sweater I was wearing earlier over the dress.
When I get there, Zina is in her usual spot, which surprises me.
This is her time to be out and about.
“Nice outfit,” she says. “I really like the combination of ratty old
hoodie over insanely expensive dress.”
I roll my eyes and pull the hoodie off. Zina’s brows go up when she
sees the dress by itself.
“Damn. He’s still pulling out all the stops for you, isn’t he?”
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“He has to. My appearance reflects on him,” I say. “It’s not
because he cares about me.”
Lucky Drow
Zina grunts, and I go take a shower. When I come out, Zina is organizing printouts on her coffee table.
“What is this?” I ask as I sink down on the couch, glad to be in my
comfy pajamas.
“Listen, don’t take this the wrong way, because I am not kicking
you out. But you said you were interested in getting your own place, so…here are some places. You’ve been busy, so I wanted to
help.”
“Thanks,” I say, touched by the gesture.
“You know if you buy it now, it could be considered part of your
marital assets,” Zina says.
I groan. The thought has occurred to me, but only briefly. Zina is right–I’ve been busy. Too busy to think about things I really need
- 10.
“I’ll have to figure something out about that,” I say.
“Which one is your favorite?” I ask Zina.
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She showed me, and then she showed me the others. By the time
we finish talking, it’s late. I go back to my room, ready to crash. Then my phone rings.
It’s my mom.
My heart skips a beat. Mom is currently a permanent resident at
an upscale mental hospital. She almost never calls.
My heart pounds as I answer and I grip the gold and star sapphire necklace she gave me. “Mom? Is everything okay?”
“Of course, sweetie! I just miss you. How are you? Has work been
okay lately?”
She sounds so normal it makes my heart ache. She has good
days like this a lot of the time, but they never last.
“Well, work is…” I could lie, but I don’t want to, so I just come out
and say, “Terrible. I quit.”
“Oh!” she says. “Why is that? I thought you liked your job.”
My mom thought I was a flight attendant at a real airline. The
world she lived in was only half real.
“The traveling was exciting at first, but it got old,” I say. “I’m just going to…take it easy for a while.”
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My mom murmurs an understanding sound, then says, “Well, Cassian owns the company anyway. I’m sure he’ll be happy to have you whenever you decide to go back.”
I swallow a snort of derision. I can’t even imagine the hoops.
Cassian would force me to jump through if I tried to go back to my warehouse job now.
“Sure,” I say.
“I do miss Cassian,” my mother says. “You haven’t brought him to
visit in so long. Will you bring him?”
I cringe with guilt at her words. Her mental condition fluctuates a lot, with periods of improvement and decline. She hasn’t stabilized, even though she’s been getting the best in–patient care
for years.
She’s obviously doing well right now. I don’t want to start her on a downward spiral by refusing her.
“Of course, Mom,” I say. “We’ll visit you tomorrow.”
B
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