Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 42745 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 214(@200wpm)___ 171(@250wpm)___ 142(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 42745 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 214(@200wpm)___ 171(@250wpm)___ 142(@300wpm)
Something flickers in her eyes, but her voice remains calm. “Is that what you want, Penn? You want me to divorce you?”
I suck in a breath because just hearing her say the words makes me sick to my stomach. “No, it’s the last thing I want, but I wouldn’t blame you if you did. I mean, like I said, I would understand, and maybe it’s for the best.”
She closes up her sandwich and sets it back in the bag. She’s really calm about it, and when she looks at me, guilt rises in my chest because her eyes are filled with pain. “Tell me something, Penn. Do you love me?”
I grit my teeth. “You know I love you.”
She nods. “Right. So why are you doing this?”
I jut my chin at her. “Because you deserve more than I can give you.”
“Bullshit,” she exclaims.
I rear back in surprise. Aria never cusses, so for her to do so, I know she’s mad.
She stands up. “Guess what, Penn?”
I stare up at her. “What?”
She puts a hand on her hip. “I love you too, and I’m not just going to give up on us.” She picks up the bag with her sandwich in it. “I’ve moved back home, and I think you should do the same. We can’t work this out if we’re not living together.”
“But…” I start. She doesn’t let me finish.
“Also, I have my boss’s birthday dinner on Friday night, and I don’t want to go alone. Will you go with me?”
My mouth drops. I thought for sure my wife was going to be talking to me about getting a divorce, and here she is asking me on a date. What is even happening right now? When I don’t answer right away, she continues. “I know you work Friday during the day and there’s a chance you won’t be able to make it for dinner, but I’d appreciate it if you’d try.”
Fuck. I’ve let her down so many times, but she’s still giving me chances to make things right. “I’ll be there. I’ll pick you up at the house. What time?”
“The dinner starts at six.”
“I’ll be there to pick you up at 5:45.”
She nods, and I gesture to the spot next to me. “Are you going to sit back down?”
She holds the bag closer to her. “No. I think I’m going to go back to my office and eat. I’m a little mad at you right now. I can’t believe you said divorce, Penn.”
My mouth drops open. I’ve hurt her… again.
She leans over and picks up the container that holds the cake. “I’m going to take this and eat it myself.”
She turns to go but then stops. “And Sunday, I know you will probably be working, but I’m still going to have dinner with your family.”
I stand up. “Our family. No matter what is going on between us, my family loves you, Aria, and you’ll always be a part of it.”
I know what my words mean to her. Aria didn’t have a good home life growing up. She’s dreamed of having a big family, and that’s why it hurts so badly that I can’t give that to her.
She shoves the cake into the bag and then with one hand on the door, she looks back at me. “Eat your lunch, Penn. You look tired.” She gestures to the couch. “And that is way too small for you to be sleeping on. Come home.”
I just stare at her. She’s so tempting. I want to hold her to me, confess everything, and then see what happens. Before I can do that, she says, looking straight at me, “I love you.”
I don’t even think about it. “I love you too.”
Then she opens the door. “Five forty-five on Friday,” she says.
“I’ll be there,” I answer.
She nods. “You better be.”
“I will.” And even though I never make promises with my schedule, I do it anyway because this is important. “I promise.”
Her eyebrows lift, and she nods once and walks out of my office.
I stand here long after the door closes, staring at the place where she was.
My heart is pounding. For the first time in days, I feel a weight lift off my shoulders. I tried to do the right thing and end things, but that’s not what she wants. I still need to come clean, but maybe, just maybe we have a chance to make this work. We do have options.
All that matters right now is she’s not divorcing me. She’s giving me another chance. And this time, I can’t waste it.
CHAPTER 16
ARIA
The cafeteria is louder than usual today, or maybe it only feels that way because I’m trying not to think about Penn. That’s pretty much impossible when I’m in the same hospital as him. I’ve seen him twice this morning from a distance: once near the nurse station on the surgical floor and once when he was stepping into the elevator with another doctor. Both times, he looked tired.