Chapter 4
The days that followed were a blur for Eric.
He couldn’t focus at work. Couldn’t sleep. Couldn’t stop replaying Hadley’s face the night she brushed him off like he meant nothing.
He had thought time would make her forgive him. That the sweet, loyal girl he married would eventually come back if he just stayed away long enough.
He was wrong.
In his mind, he still saw her standing alone at the top of those stairs years ago, bewildered, tearful.
Back then, he chose anger over trust.
Back then, he turned his back when she needed him most.
Now she was stronger. Beautiful in a way that twisted his gut with longing.
And completely out of his reach.
Eric didn’t care about the whispers, the rumors, the men who lined up for a glimpse of her.
He needed to see her again.
Talk to her.
Explain.
If she hated him after that, fine.
But he couldn’t live with her thinking he never cared.
So, he found out where she performed next.
The second night, he showed up again — hidden among the crowd, watching her light up the stage with effortless grace.
She danced like she belonged to no one.
Like she was untouchable.
Eric’s heart ached just looking at her.
When the show ended, he waited by the side entrance, where the performers slipped away unnoticed.
And when Hadley finally appeared, wrapped in a long coat with her hair falling over one shoulder, he stepped forward.
“Hadley,” he said.
She stopped, the streetlamp throwing a soft glow on her face.
For a second, something flickered in her eyes — something sharp and unspoken.
But she quickly masked it.
“What now, Eric?” she asked, her voice steady.
“I need to talk to you,” he said. “Just five minutes.”
Hadley tilted her head, as if considering it.
Then she smiled — a cold, beautiful smile.
“Five minutes,” she said. “But don’t expect kindness.”
They sat at a tiny coffee shop across the street, tucked into a dark corner.
Eric wrapped his hands around the coffee cup, though he didn’t touch it. His throat was too dry.
Hadley, on the other hand, looked perfectly at ease.
Confident. Indifferent.
“So,” she said lightly, “what do you want to say?”
Eric searched for words — but none seemed enough.
“I was wrong,” he finally said. “About everything. About you.”
Hadley leaned back, crossing one leg over the other, watching him.
“I believed what they said,” he continued, hating himself more with every word. “I didn’t even listen to you. I didn’t protect you.”
He swallowed hard. “I failed you.”
For a moment, there was silence between them.
Then Hadley laughed softly — a sound that hurt more than any slap could have.
“You failed me?” she repeated, voice silky.
“You didn’t just fail me, Eric. You destroyed me.”
He flinched, but she wasn’t finished.
“You believed the worst of me when it mattered most. You turned everyone against me. You tossed me aside like I was nothing. And now,” she said, standing up gracefully, “you want forgiveness?”
Eric stood too, desperate, reaching out — but she stepped back.
“You don’t deserve it,” she said, her eyes hard. “You don’t deserve me.”
And just like that, Hadley walked out into the night.
Leaving Eric sitting there, haunted by the woman he had once called his wife.
And for the first time in a long, long time — he realized he might never get her back.