Goodbye, Mr. Regret

"Yes."

That's exactly how suffocating it felt.

If they could part on good terms, maybe she'd remember the good in him.

The failure of their marriage-she knew it was the result of her own bad choices. She wasn't about to pin all the blame on him.

But this relentless pressure-this was what she truly hated.

All Jessica wanted was a small slice of life that belonged to her alone, but even that tiny wish, he insisted on denying her.

Jessica Greene looked at him, sorrow weighing in her eyes. "You're not a fool, Timothy. You know exactly what's become of our marriage. There are only a few weeks left-what's the point in dragging this out?"

"Jessy, most marriages fall apart because of cheating, family issues, or lack of communication. Now you want a divorce-shouldn't we at least sit down and talk about what went wrong? If we can fix it, let's fix it. If we can't, then we'll end it. That's how a marriage should be-beginning to end. Why can't we just talk?"

Jessica let out a bitter laugh. "So you do understand."

He knew everything, yet acted as if he didn't know a thing.

"I've been thinking it through, Jessy. I'm sorry. We've been married seven years—I thought everything was normal. If you want to go home tonight, that's fine. But can we please sit down and talk?" Timothy gestured to the chair across from him.

Jessica remained standing. "We're way past the talking stage."

"We still have a few weeks, don't we? How is it too late?"

"Because any feeling I had left for this marriage is already dead."

woman she'd once been the one

that Jessica didn't even want to fight. They barely ever argued. She used to be the quiet one, unable to speak up; now that she finally could, Timothy had become

voice was steady, almost gentle. "So what you're saying is, you actually did have

people do," Jessica

filter. He stubbed it out, grabbed his cane, and walked

leaning on a cane, he was still devastatingly handsome-his

already gone. I don't want to waste what's left. Can you give me these last

and resignation. "Did you lie about the waiting period too? About when we'd actually sign the

more time. Jessy, I think there's been a misunderstanding between us. Whatever you think you saw-did you ever try to verify it? There's a saying-even what we see with our own eyes

Jessica fell silent.

nothing

on. "If you're leaving me, at least let

shot back, "Don't you

"I know some of it. You mean about me

wanted to settle it all at once. Better to face the whole ugly truth now than to have it drag out, piece

all of it. We don't see the world the same way-our values don'Dmatch, and

bothered to mention Sheila again.

she was

to look

around, blocking her path. "So you're not even going to

a chance to explain?"

to hand the title of Mrs. Lawson back to you. From start finish, this was

marriage

free