After the Last Tear: Rising from the Ashes of a Broken Marriage By Cassila K

Chapter 14

Elaine walked away.

Alistair watched her walk away, suitcase in hand, without a hint of hesitation or a single glance back. It was the first time she had ever turned her back on him. Stunned, he staggered to his car, his mind stuck on her final question-one he still couldn't answer.

As he drove through morning traffic toward Chase Enterprises, he passed Westbrook Academy, on impulse, he pulled over.

Westbrook was where he and Elaine went to high school. They had tied for the top spot, but while teachers loved Elaine, the perfect straight-A student, Alistair was the school's resident bad boy.

He used to run into her all the time—when she was cornered by bullies, caught in the rain without an umbrella, or that one time he teased that she was such a goody-two-shoes she'd help old ladies cross the street... only to actually catch her doing it the next day.

The coincidences didn't stop there. She'd forget her lunch card in the cafeteria, get locked in the equipment room, or end up manning the camera at basketball games-where, he later realized, most of her photos were of him.

being such a rule follower, so uptight. She'd just lower her

class, only to sneak back and find her hunched over her desk, hiding behind a

which straight-A nerd had managed to catch Miss

at the bottom of the page.

surprise! If we'd known you were coming, we would have prepared

man was practically jogging toward

through.

unplanned visit, he might never have realized how vividly he remembered

students, he felt a strange sense. So young, so full of life, laughing, teasing each other. Some red-faced and awkward whenever their crush

phone rang, it was his

showed up at the office. Security refused her, so she's making a scene in the lobby, demanding to

of his nose. He turned and