Ray's frustration boiled beneath his skin, and yet, he couldn't fully grasp the weight of his own anger. He stared at Esme, trying to comprehend how she had ended up like this—how the woman he had once known had turned into someone he couldn't recognize. He felt a bitter ache in his chest, gnawing at him with every breath.
How? How could she do it? How could she hide everything from him? The weight of his confusion suffocated him. He didn't know how to make sense of it. The years they'd spent together, the trust they had built, seemed like a distant memory now, a shadow of what they had once shared.
At the start of their marriage, Ray had never expected anything more than a contractual agreement. It was what it was—a deal, something they both had to honor. He had never wanted to ask for more from her. He understood the circumstances, knew it wasn't her fault.
