Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 121210 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 606(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121210 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 606(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
“Is this because of that stupid fucking article? Because I picked a date for us? If you’re not ready, I’ll give you time. If you don’t want the fucking wedding, we don’t have to have it. I just want—”
“It’s more than that,” I say, knowing the dismissal will feel vicious. I need it to. I need him to hate me. “It’s everything. I’m sorry. I can’t go back. I can’t stay married to you.”
“So, that’s it?” he asks sardonically, dropping the papers and ring on the kitchen table, poison in his tone. “You’ve decided you’re done, so we’re done.” He paces the floor in front of me, anger and insecurity making his normally vibrant stature seem two feet tall. “Am I getting this right?”
“I’m sorry, Clay,” I whisper, my tears finally bursting through my carefully crafted fortress. He sees my weakness and uses it against me, pulling me into his arms and slamming his mouth down on mine.
“I love you, baby. I love you so much. I love you more than anything,” he whispers against my lips, and I push away roughly.
I shove the papers and ring back into the envelope and force it back into his chest, hardening myself out of necessity.
“It’s over, Clay. You can’t stay. So, go. I want you to go!”
He drops to his knees and pulls my hands into his, but I rip them away and take two steps back. “You need to leave,” I say, and when he doesn’t budge, I turn hysterical. “You need to leave! It’s over!”
I shove him in the shoulder until he sways back on his knees, and I scream over and over again as tears stream down his cheeks. “Leave, Clay! Leave right now!”
“Fine. Fucking fine,” he says, stifling a sob and climbing to his feet. “You want a divorce, Josie? I’ll fucking give you one.” He rips open the pink front door and turns back just once to look over his shoulder. “I’ll make sure my lawyer gets these papers filed for you. I’ll make sure you never need to see my fucking face again.”
The door slams behind him, and I drop to my knees before crumpling all the way to the floor.
It’s done.
After The Moment: Part 7
The Months Long Fight
53
Josie
Sunday, October 31st
“Please, Josie,” Norah begs, loitering near the counter while I cash out Melba.
I ignore her completely and smile at Melba. “That’ll be $6.82.”
Melba opens her purse and starts to root around in her wallet, and Norah takes that as the perfect moment to keep hounding me.
“Just come to the Halloween party with me tonight,” she says and holds her hands together like she’s praying. “It’ll be fun.”
“Honey, do you mind if I give you two dollars in dimes?” Melba asks, and I want to laugh at how predictable she always is. Melba is notorious for having more change than anyone should have. Grandma Rose used to gift her with coin-wrapping papers in the hopes that she’d cash some of it out at the bank. But no, never. Melba prefers to carry around an extra five pounds of coins in her purse.
And I know I don’t even have to answer the question because it’s not an option. If Melba wants to give you a hundred dollars in pennies, you best pull up a chair and prepare yourself to watch her count out ten thousand freaking pennies.
“Here, Melba,” Norah says, stepping up to the counter. “I’ll help you count.”
Melba doesn’t hesitate to drop a handful of dimes into Norah’s hands, and my persistent sister proceeds to count the dimes while she’s on my ass about going to Earl’s Halloween party tonight.
“It’ll be fun, Jose. I mean, how often do we get to enjoy a night on the town together?” she questions, glancing up at me briefly between every few dimes she puts into a stack of ten.
“Nore, like I said the first ten times you asked me when you came in here, I’m not going.”
Every year, Earl throws a Halloween party for the whole town, and the location always changes. He used to have it at his actual grocery store, but one year when Lance and Mikey took it upon themselves to raid the chip aisle, Earl had a conniption and never threw the party at his store again. Now, his party flits around to various small businesses that can host a large number of people, and this year, the location is The Country Club.
“Is this because of Clay?” Norah asks, and I roll my eyes.
“No.” Maybe. Sure, since everything happened with Summer, we’ve managed to be amicable toward each other. But I still haven’t forgotten that the bastard didn’t file the divorce papers. I mean, how could you forget you’re still married to someone?
“How much was it again?” Melba questions. At this point, she has a dollar bill and five dollars’ worth of dimes stacked on the counter.