Page 15 of Kiss From A Rose

"Where are you getting all this from?"

"I've been working for you for three years, and we work long hourstogether, Gray. Your kids come by. The other day Jude was waiting for you and his phone rang, and he let it go to voicemail and said, "My mother is such a nag.'"

I’d done this. How had I made it so my kids didn’t respect Rose? And then, it hit me.They didn't respect her because I didn't. They learned from me.

My heart began to pound, and I realized that theDear Johnletter was more than I deserved from Rose. My warm, loving wife, who was kindness herself had been treated like dirt by me.

She never yelled or screamed. She never raised her voice. She didn't fight with me. She soothed and calmed. She was our guardian angel, and we all treated her like a doormat.

"The thing is, that's howyoutalk about her as well. Maybe you don't say the wordnag, but your behavior more or less makes that clear, I assumed…" —she looked around flustered— "Look, I'm going to go back to my office before I say something I'm going to regret."

I was too shocked to respond, so I just stood still, feeling my world shatter around me more than it already had.

How the hell had this become my life?

CHAPTER 7

Rose

"How's Malou doing?" Leah asked over the phone as I kneaded dough for bread after the guests had gone to bed. This was my quiet time—when I could think while preparing for the next day.

It had been ten days since I left Atlanta.

My heart was broken.

I missed Gray.

I was tempted to call him about five times a day, but I stopped myself. He never answered when I lived at home and he recognized my number, so what were the chances he'd pick up now, especially from an unfamiliar one?

"Fading away. I went with her to see her doctor yesterday, and she doesn't have a lot of time left."

"God, Rose, I'm so sorry. I can't even imagine how hard this is for you."

"She's so young. It breaks my heart."

"Speakin' of heartbreaks, I have all the paperwork ready."

I let out an unsteady breath and stopped kneading for a moment.

I asked Leah to handle the divorce and deliver the papers to Gray. My biggest fear was handing them to him myself, only to watch him glance at them, nod, and go back to whatever was on his computer screen. To avoid that painful moment, I took what felt like the coward’s way out and had Leah take care of it.

"Okay. If you send the papers to me, I can sign and get them back to you."

"Rose, are you sure you don't want to get some money? Honey, you took care of his house and his children."

"Ourhouse andourchildren. I don't want a dime from him."

"I can fight the prenup. You've been together for twenty years."

"I don't want you to, Leah."

"I hate that you're having to go through a divorce. But I get it. I mean, it's all over town so…."

"What's all over town?" I asked, my heart hammering.

"Come on, Rose, you know."

I cleared my throat. I was gone just a few days, and had Gray already moved on? Well, that just told me where I stood on his list of priorities.

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