Winning Back His Ex's Wife's Broken Heart by Hayley

Chapter 13

Richard's

POV.

I stood in front of the mirror, adjusting the collar of my shirt. The room felt different these days. It was colder.

Susan had changed everything, from the curtains to the furniture. Even the staff moved differently around the house.

They used to smile more, chat a bit while they worked. Now, they were quieter, always with their eyes down, moving quickly and carefully.

Susan was stricter, and honestly, I didn't mind. I liked the order. I liked the discipline.

We had an event tonight-another one of those high-profile gatherings. Susan was going all out as usual.

She was already dressed, standing in front of the mirror in her silver gown, checking her reflection every few minutes.

"How do I look?" she asked again, turning slightly to see the back of her dress.

"You look stunning," I said, barely glancing at her. My focus was on finding my tie. It should've been right here in the closet, on the top shelf where it always was.

But it was gone. I frowned, digging through the shelves, and pushing aside shirts and scarves.

"Are you going to stand there all night?" Susan's voice cut through the room. "We need to leave in ten minutes."

"I can't find my tie," I muttered, digging through the drawer. I could feel my patience wearing thin.

She sighed loudly and sat back down in front of the vanity, adjusting her hair. "Well, if you didn't keep things so haphazardly..."

Haphazardly? I stared at the neatly organized shelves. Susan had reorganized everything when she moved in.

She said it was for the best, that everything needed to be in its proper place. I didn't argue at the time.

She liked things a certain way, and I was fine with that. But now, here I was, standing in front of a wardrobe full of clothes and no tie.

I yanked open another drawer. Nothing. I glanced at the top shelf, then hesitated.

The ties used to be up there, in a small compartment, before Susan had moved things around.

automatically, only to

even bothering

it felt off. They used to be a system,

even find a simple tie without

was in the same situation, searching frantically for a tie before

middle of my mess, calm as ever. She had pointed out

so I wouldn't have to scramble like this. She used to do things like that all the time. But back then, I never really noticed or cared. I

and giving herself one last look in the mirror. "Let's go.

the tie knot, which felt too

at the wardrobe,

tie. Why was this bothering

the stairs, Susan already ahead, heels clicking on the floor. She was always

for stuff like organizing ties or making sure things were where they needed to be without making a big

kept telling myself. Just a small

got into the car and pulled the door shut, I felt that tightness again,

see, and what we should say, but

to shake the feeling that something wasn't quite right, even though I couldn't put my finger on it. It didn't matter. It

***

I made our way through the crowd, greeting

the usual chatter, laughter, and the clinking of glasses. Susan clung to

the main hall, and the noise hit us again-laughter, clinking

my side, her hand wrapped around my arm. The way she fit me like a cloth made my

We turned to see Ben, an old colleague, walking toward us with a grin on his

added, "I heard about the divorce, that must be hard on

my arm tighten. She forced a smile, but I could tell it was strained. "Everything's

at Susan.

before whispering, "You really moved on fast, huh? There's been some talk... you know

widened. "What

lowering his voice even more. "Just some folks wondering if... well, if maybe there was someone else before the divorce. You know how rumors start." Susan's face flushed red, and I could see she was on the edge of

with a tight smile. "We don't

said, holding up his hands.

said, her voice

himself, and we moved on, weaving through the crowd.

approached us. It was Mr. Johnson, one of the senior

me warmly, shaking my hand. "It's been too long. And