Page 58 of The Accidental Wife

“Can’t really miss it, mate.” I hiss, putting a little emphasis on the mate. “Leave.” I growl and watch as he holds his hands up and backs away. As soon as he leaves, I spin Shayla around and look down at her. Her usual bright green eyes go dark the moment our eyes meet.

She was pissed.

So, here I am, at one in the morning, chasing her down the street. I grab her hand before she could get too far and pull her back to me. “Shayla, will you please just get in the car and let’s talk?”

She sighs and stares at the ground. “There is nothing to talk about. Go home, Cole.” She tries to pull her hand out of my grasp and looks up at me when I tighten my grip, not letting her go.

“We’re going to talk about this, and you’re going to hear me out. Get in the car.” I retort, and we glare at each other. “Please.”

Shayla finally relents, “Fine.” We walk over to the car. I open the door for her to get in. We drive back to my apartment in silence. I glance over at her while she’s staring out of the window. Her entire body was turned away from me, almost as if she couldn’t even bear to be around me.

I pull up behind my apartment complex, in front of a beautiful waterfront. Thought it would be a nice place for us to talk. I take my seatbelt off and turn to face her in my seat. She doesn’t look at me, just stares ahead silently. “Shayla, look at me,” I say, and she ignores me and keeps staring ahead.

“You said you wanted me to hear you out. I’m listening. Talk, or I’m leaving.” She utters icily.

I sigh and lick my lips, “Shayla, I can see why you’re angry. I get it, I do, but I didn’t lie to you.” I explain and watch her reaction. “What I told you from the very beginning is the sole reason I asked for your help. It had nothing to do with Sophie, not really. I mean, did a very small part of me hope to get a reaction out of her? Yes it did.” I add, and she continues to stare ahead. “I would have hoped that you, of all people, would understand the feeling of wanting some closure after having your heartbroken. If your ex—the one that hurt you, came back into your life suddenly, can you honestly tell me you wouldn’t get some sort of satisfaction out of watching him squirm after he hurt you?” I ask, and Shayla sighs. “You would, wouldn’t you?”

When she doesn’t answer, I reach for her hand, but just as my fingers brush hers, she pulls it away. “Are you still in love with her?” She asks, her voice barely over a whisper. I wanted to say no, but it felt like my mouth was glued shut. Shayla turns her head and looks at me, her eyes searching mine before they look away again. She nods, “What do you want from me, Cole?” She whispers.

Again, my mouth suddenly feels heavy, like even if I tried to speak, I couldn’t get the words out. I could only look at her. “If you’re still in love with her, why don’t you just divorce me and tell her how you feel? She obviously feels the same, or she wouldn’t have bothered coming back into your life.”

I lick my lips, shaking my head, “Honestly? I’m not so sure what she wants. I can’t tell if she’s back because she genuinely still loves me or if she’s threatened by you and just wants to sabotage my life out of spite.”

Shayla wraps her arms around herself and chews her bottom lip. “You’re afraid of getting hurt again.” She states, and I nod, spinning the ring on my finger. “If she comes back, would you give it another go?”

I shrug, “I don’t know. I honestly don’t know, and until this week, I thought I was over her. Then she told me she was marrying Derrick, and I just blew up at her.” I explain, scratching my forehead. “I’m just…” I trail off and look at Shayla, who was twirling her diamond ring on her finger. Her hair fell around her face like a curtain, and I wanted to reach out and brush it back so I could see her face, but I couldn’t find the nerve to touch her.

“Cole, if you genuinely love this girl, just tell her and find a way to make it work. There’s no point in hanging onto this arrangement we have for another three and a half months.” Shayla explains, looking ahead. “We’ll divorce like we originally planned, and you can get your shares the right way without lying to your family.”

I frown, “You want to end our arrangement?”

She nods and looks down at her hands placed in her lap. “Yes. It’s the right thing to do, and deep down, you know that too. This whole thing was a mistake from the beginning.”

I shake my head and feel my gut twist at her words, “What about you? Your family?” She shrugs.

“Don’t worry about me. I’ll figure something out, I always do.” She says with a faint smile and reaches for the door handle. I curl my fingers around her wrist and stop her. She looks back at me, our eyes meet, and even in the dark, I can see the sadness she’s trying to conceal in her eyes.

“Shayla…”

“Cole, please, let me go.” She whispers pleadingly. There was something so final in her words and the way she said ‘let me go’ that made my heart clench. I loosen my hold on her, and she opens the door and steps out of the car. I watch her as she closes the door and walks along the waterfront. The wind blowing her hair back, she wraps her arms around herself while she looks out at the water.

I get out of the car, shrug my jacket off and walk over to her. I place my coat on her shoulders, draw her back against me and press my forehead to the top of her head, my hands rubbing her arms slowly to warm her up. When she doesn’t make any movements nor pushes me away, I wrap my arms around her shoulders and press a kiss to her temple. “Don’t hit me with the goodbye…not yet,” I whisper in her ear, and I feel her heave a sigh. “You promised to be the light in my life, remember?”

“You don’t need me, Cole.”

I close my eyes, “Yes, I do. We have a signed agreement, and I gave you and your mother my word, and I’m not about to go back on that promise,” I turn her around to face me, and she looks up at me. “We’re going to see this thing through as we planned, and when the six months is up, then I’ll let you go. Not a minute sooner.”

Shayla sighs and licks her lips, “And what about Sophie?”

I shrug with a sigh, “She’s getting married soon, and I don’t really know if I’m ready to open up that particular can of worms just yet.”

Shayla bites her bottom lip, “It’s obvious there’s still something there between you. I think she’s using this Derrick guy to get a reaction out of you.”

“You think so?” She nods.

“Yeah, I really do, or she wouldn’t be kicking off one second and kissing you the next,” Shayla explains, averting her gaze to the water. “The moment you give her the green light, she’ll be yours. I promise you.”

“It’s not that simple though, I can’t just forget the fact that she walked out on me.” I tilt my head back and groan, “I want her to feel just a fraction of what she put me through. Maybe then, I’ll consider giving us another chance.”

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