Hitched & Hitched Again: A Comedy of Marital Mayhem

Chapter 365

Elysia defiantly lifted her chin, her voice strong but betrayed by the unstoppable tears streaming down her face. Some wounds, she realized, weren't so easily numbed by time or distraction.

The presence of her kids had been a salve to her aching heart, but now, facing the very source of her anguish, her emotions spiraled out of control. She was determined not to cry over this anymore, yet she couldn't help herself. Her tears flowed like a breached dam, beyond her control.

Tarquin, his heart aching for her, tentatively reached out to wipe her tears, only to be met with rejection. "I told you, don't touch me!" Elysia snapped, batting his hand away.

Tarquin's hand froze mid-air, his expression one of a bewildered child, unsure of what to do next.

Elysia, in a futile attempt to regain some composure, roughly wiped away her tears and defensively claimed, "I'm crying because you mentioned something from six years ago, reminding me of issues between my husband and me. It has nothing to do with you!"

Tarquin was skeptical. "So, you're saying it wasn't you last night?"

"No, it wasn't!"

Tarquin challenged, opening his robe

and lips pressed tightly together, insisted, "It

wasn't you, then it must have been me or Elijah. Do you really think

- it could only

Elysia had no choice but to confess, "It was me! You tried to take advantage of me

to reveal bruises on her

I would never touch another woman,

in his drunken state, only to be met with violence. Even inebriated, he

and six years ago at the airport. It was always you," Tarquin insisted, stepping

denied it vehemently. "It