I stood there, staring at the door he’d walked through, feeling something hollow inside me twist and curl. Once, I believed I was lucky too. I thought I’d found someone who would never hurt me.
Now I understand.
I was just the shadow he loved because she wasn’t there.
The doorbell rang the moment Dominic’s car disappeared down the street. I thought maybe he’d forgotten something, so I wiped my eyes, forced myself to stand straight, and went to open it.
But it wasn’t him.
It was her.
A woman stood there, tall, graceful, holding a fancy pastry box with a pink ribbon tied around it.
“Hi,” she said, tilting her head a little. “I’m Loriana. We’ve been talking.”
Her name hit me like a punch, but I didn’t say anything. My mouth just went dry.
She kept smiling, though her eyes were full of amusement. “Dominic’s been so kind to me lately. I wanted to make him something special to say thank you. Since I’m already here, you won’t shut the door on me, right? You’re not that kind of wife.”
Before I could even breathe out a word, she brushed past me and walked right in, her heels clicking on the marble floor like she owned the place.