Page 54 of The Bratva's Arranged Bride

It was bad enough that Tia didn’t trust me, but for that kind of life-changing information to just fall into her lap? It was earth-shattering, and certainly not something I could just sweep under the rug and hope for the best.

Regardless of our mutual attraction, a secret that big was bound to cause damage, which was exactly why I’d tried to keep it from her.

If I was smart, I would’ve had some sort of excuse ready to deflect the truth. I should’ve been convincing and avoided any kind of repercussions.

But, deep down, I knew that wouldn’t have helped, either. Further lying would’ve only angered her more. Even if she didn’t know anything about my lifestyle before, Tia wasn’t naive. She would’ve pieced everything together eventually.

And in the end, I would be right back at square one.

After it was all said and done, I shouldn’t have assumed time would somehow mend the cracks in what I was previously trying to build. I should’ve anticipated the influx of iciness from her that was somehow even worse than before.

Regardless of the days passing, she hardly said anything to me. She was closed off, and after all the mistakes I made, there was a gaping void between us.

I hated it.

I hated feeling like I was sleeping beside a cold body at night. One that wanted nothing to do with me.

As much as I wanted to believe it wasn’t affecting me like one would expect, it seemed to be even worse than that.

Work was a blur most days, and when I was especially stuck in my head, it felt agonizingly long.

I’d wish I could come back home to Tia and feel a semblance of warmth again. Even if it seemed like a long shot, I just wanted the chance to reach a place we had yet to discover.

Our marriage was built on a rocky struggle that drove me insane, and trying to gain her trust had been a massive undertaking in the first place. But with the truth out in the open, becoming something real and mutual seemed impossible.

Regardless of how brutally I fumbled everything with the only woman who could ever capture my attention so completely, making me see nothing but her, I couldn’t live like that.

I couldn’t just coast through life knowing my wife hated me.

I had to do something before I let her get completely out of my reach.

When work became the last thing I could focus on, I left early and pulled up to the house in the afternoon.

It was quiet when I walked in, aside from Bear’s usual greeting while he circled my legs and followed me up the stairs.

I gave him a pat on the back while I pulled myself together in a silent pep talk, well aware that I had no choice but to appeal to Tia.

Heading straight for her art room, my steps halted at the sound of a zipper being done up in the bedroom. It was loud enough to catch my attention, and before I could think about it, I pivoted and changed direction.

Pushing the door open, the near quiet in the room felt deafening the moment I saw her standing there.

She was packing.

With one of my suitcases placed on the bed, Tia moved one of the internal compartments before folding a top and placing it inside.

At first, I was completely frozen. But the longer I watched her pack, the harder it all dawned on me, and the harder it hurt.

She was planning on leaving. Uprooting and fleeing without so much as a word.

Immediately, I saw red.

“What the hell are you doing?” I uttered, feeling the sharp edge of my tone while I took a few stiff steps closer.

Despite being startled, Tia didn’t even look back at me while she quickened her movements with a deep huff, as if more annoyed than anything that I was home.

“I’m leaving.”

“No, you aren’t,” I muttered back while struggling to stomach my disbelief. “After everything…taking care of you, giving you everything you need, giving you space…after all of that, and you’re just…running away?”

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