Page 134 of The Proposal
I whip around. Foxx walks toward me, carrying a manila envelope.
The look in his eye has me backing away. “What are you doing?”
“This is for you.”
“What if I don’t want it?”
He holds it in the air between us. “It’s from Renn.”
I take it from him and toss it on the bed like it might bite me. It’s a Wild West standoff—Renn facing me, me facing the envelope, and the envelope threatening to explode.
“It’s from Renn?” I ask, just to be sure.
“It says Renn on the front.”
“I’m not emotionally stable enough for this. Can you open it?”
“No.”
“Come on, Foxxy. Help a girl out. I only have one hand.” I’m wearing him down. I can tell. “Just open it. You don’t have to look at it or anything. Just open it for me.”
He’s not happy but takes the bait. He undoes the fastener and then puts the envelope back on the bed.
“Do you need a phone charger?” he asks.
“Yes. Do you have one?”
“Give me your phone.”
I fork it over. I’m too preoccupied even to crack a joke.
“I’m going to get this taken care of,” he says.
“Okay. Thank you.”
He walks out, leaving me with the mystery delivery.
I take a long, deep breath and pick it up. The papers, a chunk of them, slide out onto the bed.
And my world falls apart.
District Court
Clark County, Nevada
Joint Petition for Divorce (with no children)
A deep, raw sob spills from the depths of my chest. “No!”
Tears blind me. I wince from the pain of having my hopes and dreams ripped from me. I hunch over to prevent my whole heart from shattering on the floor.
My hand hits the mattress. The motion bobbles the papers just enough for me to see Renn’s signature in black ink at the bottom of the last page.
I crawl to the middle of the bed and curl into a ball. The force of the heaves is so strong that it’s nearly impossible to breathe.
It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have left him. I should’ve stayed.
I want to think we should’ve gotten an annulment right after our wedding, but I can’t make myself believe it. The last few days have been the best days of my life. I wouldn’t trade them for the world.
