Page 85 of Wretched Heart
I sink into a chair. I know what this is, and I’ve been dreading it for weeks. Just because Hunter and I hadn’t spoken about ending our marriage, didn’t mean work wasn’t going on behind the scenes. I shouldn’t be surprised that it’s Ash, and not Hunter, who seems to be leading the charge.
“We appreciate all the hard work you’ve been doing,” Ash begins. “And I know you put a lot of trust in us when you agreed to sell the mill. Which is why we want to give you the chance to buy back your half. We’ll absorb the admin costs so you’ll be paying exactly what you received when we took over.”
I can’t keep my eyes off Hunter as he stares into his damn coffee. It’s a generous offer. Almost too good to be true. “Why?”
Ash slides a document across the table to me. “Because it’s the right thing to do.”
“Is it?” I ask, directing the question at Hunter.
When Hunter looks up, I feel my heart swell as it always does when I’m caught in his gaze. I see pain for the briefest moment, but before I can grasp the connection between us, a coldness falls over his features.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?” I ask.
His gaze flicks to a large brown envelope that was hidden beneath the papers. It has my name on it. Whatever’s inside, I don’t want to see it. I’m not ready.
My husband clears his throat. “I’m sorry, Maddie,” hesays. “We knew this day would come. There’s no reason to keep you bound to our arrangement any longer.”
I gasp out the breath I’d been holding. “You’ve drawn up the divorce papers,” I say numbly.
Hunter’s nostrils flare as he looks to Ash to answer.
“We’ll be entering a new kind of partnership with you,” Ash says. “The divorce and the transfer of shares can all happen on the same day. And as soon as we’ve addressed the issue with John Cooper, we’ll close down our operations here and head back to Chicago.”
The hot liquid in my mug trembles in my grasp as I wait in vain for Hunter to speak up. I need to hear him say he wants this. “You’re leaving me on my own?” I ask, my voice cracking.
“You’ve proven yourself more than capable, Maddie,” Ash says. “In fact…”
He forces the pause and waits for me to tear my gaze from Hunter. I will myself not to cry. This is a business meeting. That’s all it is. Business. That’s all it ever was.
“As a reflection of our faith in you,” Ash continues, “we’d give you an additional one percent of our shareholding. You’d become the majority shareholder.” When I don’t react, his brow furrows. “And your father’s house is yours too, as a parting gift. All you have to do is sign the divorce papers by the end of the week.”
A tear trickles slowly down my cheek as I turn back to Hunter. “You didn’t need to bribe me. I owe you everything. All you had to do was ask,husband.”
To disguise his flinch, Hunter snatches up the brown envelope and offers it to me. “Damn it, Maddie. Just sign and we can be done.”
There’s a coldness in his stare, but I meet his ice withfire. “You couldn’t have done this in private? You needed your brothers here as back up?”
“It’s business,” he spits out.
I take the envelope, holding it between my finger and thumb as if simply touching it will corrupt my soul and leave me as heartless as the Griffins. “I suppose I should be grateful. Lose a husband, gain a company, and a multimillion-dollar house.”
“It’s your home,” he says.
I clench my jaw, but the words come out anyway. “So were you for a while.”
Gathering up the papers I’ve been handed, I stand on shaking legs. I don’t know if they’ll carry me to the door, but I’ve walked away from worse situations. Like the day I ran out of the chapel. Or when I stumbled out of the library after Hugo almost choked me. Or all those other times my brother had beaten me down.
But I still can’t think of a time when I hurt as much as I’m hurting now.
As I step away, Hunter stands. I can’t be sure if he’s going to stop me, or simply help me out of the door. I shake my head. Fuck him. “I need some time on my own,” I say.
Chapter 29
Hunter
There’s silence after Maddie leaves. I want to go after her, but it’s not going to help matters. She’s not going to hurt less if I tell her how fucking painful this is for me too, how it feels like someone’s taken a knife and spilled my guts onto the floor. I glare at Ash as if he’s still holding the blade.
“Satisfied?”
