Page 58 of The Breakup

Chapter 12

I caught Bradley by surprise on Monday. He was stepping out of his SUV in front of the real estate agent’s office when I approached him. His eyes narrowed.

“Bella.”

“Bradley.” He looked like hell. His clothes were disheveled and he hadn’t shaved. There were dark circles under his eyes. The last two days had clearly not been kind to him. I felt no guilt about that. If anything, I stared at him and wondered how I had ever loved him. What a bizarre thing to be standing in front of a man I had thought I knew inside out, with whom I had shared my thoughts and dreams and my body with, and now it was nothing. It felt surreal to think we should be in Bora Bora right now, lathering each other with sunscreen and sipping cocktails.

“Excuse me,” he said. “I have an appointment.”

I shook my head, determined to stay strong. I had thought about this all night. Had discussed it with my parents. This was what I wanted and he was going to comply with me for the first time in the entirety of our relationship. “No, you don’t. You’re not selling that house. You’re deeding it to me.”

His jaw dropped. “Why the fuck would I do that? You’re the one who left me standing at the altar like a complete loser. You humiliated me.”

That was a little satisfying, I had to admit. “Like you humiliated me?” I said, refusing to back down. I had dressed for success today. I was wearing a pencil skirt and a sleeveless polka-dot sweater with hot-pink pumps. My hair was done. Makeup and lashes on point. I had wanted to make my appearance in public feeling in control. I had wanted Bradley to see me and think he was a fool.

“I guess we’re even then.” He dug into his pocket and pulled out sunglasses. “Doesn’t mean I owe you a house.”

“Yes, it does. Because the way it stands right now, no one knows you were a serial cheater. If that gets out, everyone is going to think you’re an asshole and they’ll feel sorry for me. Women won’t date you, not seriously anyway, and your mother is going to be devastated. I took screen shots of those texts.” That was a lie, but it was a good strategic move to let him think I had them. “I’ll be the victim, you’ll be the dick. I’ll post them on social media and send them to your boss at the law firm.”

“You wouldn’t do that.” But he looked like he wasn’t entirely sure of that statement.

“Oh, you fucking want to bet?” I said in a steely voice. “Try me, Bradley.”

Given that I had only sworn a handful of times in our relationship, he seemed to understand the seriousness of my conviction. “But you’ll keep quiet if I give you the house?”

“Yes. I will happily let everyone think I’m a total flake who got cold feet. You’ll be the hero and I’ll be the crazy bitch.”

I couldn’t see his eyes behind his sunglasses, but he seemed to be thinking. “Why do you want that house?” His put his hands into the pockets of his plaid shorts.

“I gave up my apartment in Boston and my job. And I don’t want to move in with my parents. I want somewhere to lick my wounds.” That wasn’t a lie. But I was only telling him on the off chance it would appeal to his sense of decency. Did he feel any sort of guilt?

For a second he glanced off into traffic, then at the bay, then he cleared his throat. “That house wasn’t cheap, Bel.”

I knew that. I had already looked up the listing on the MLS. It wasn’t outrageously expensive though and I knew he had the money. It was really just a cottage, clearly intended to be our second home to get out of the city and to spend time with family. “Neither am I.”

Know your worth.

That was something my parents had taught me to perfection. I may be a people pleaser and naïve as they come, but I was wising up.

And I did know my worth.

I hadn’t deserved any of this.

And I wanted to stay in Maine for at least the summer. I couldn’t face going back to Boston, my entire life altered. I didn’t want to see pity on the faces of my friends and I didn’t want to beg for my job back or do the apartment scramble, trying to find something to move into immediately. I wanted to stay here, relax, get a temporary job to save up money for a security deposit while I looked for a full-time position either back in Boston or maybe in Portland. I needed time to think before I made major decisions.

Plus, I had seen the interior of the house Bradley had bought online and I wanted it. It was adorable and beachy and sweet. He had actually chosen very wisely.

Bradley rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger behind his sunglasses and sighed. “Fine. You can have the house. I’ll have my lawyer send you paperwork in the next day or two.”

“Thank you,” I said, but out of triumph, not gratitude.

“Look, I know you don’t believe me, but I do love you. Those girls had nothing to do with me and you.”

“You just keep telling yourself that,” I said. “Maybe someday you’ll actually believe it. I never will.”

I gave him a wave and walked down the sidewalk, loving the fact that I was wearing heels. I half expected him to make a crack about Christian, but he stayed silent. I heard a whistle and turned. A guy in a pickup grinned at me and waved.

I didn’t even acknowledge him.

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