Was mine.
PART 3
The next few weeks were surprisingly peaceful.
I filed for divorce.
Because the house belonged solely to me before the marriage, there was little for Mark to claim.
My attorney smiled when she read his text message announcing his beach wedding.
“That may be the most expensive text message he ever sent.”
Mark moved into a small apartment across town.
Melanie moved in with him.
At least for a while.
Then the phone calls started.
The first came at midnight.
“Jessica, listen—”
Click.
Blocked.
The second came from another number.
“Jessica, I made a mistake.”
Blocked.
The third came through Brenda.
“He wants to talk.”
“No.”
Three months later, Melanie left him.
I found out through mutual friends.
The luxury vacations disappeared.
The expensive dinners disappeared.
Reality arrived.
And reality wasn’t nearly as attractive as fantasy.
PART 4
Six months after the divorce, I received a certified letter.
Inside was a request.
Mark wanted to meet.
Against my better judgment, I agreed.
We met at a coffee shop.
The man sitting across from me barely resembled the confident husband who had texted me from a beach.
His hair was thinner.
His eyes looked tired.
His expensive watch was gone.
“Jessica,” he said softly, “I miss us.”
I almost laughed.
“There is no us.”
“I know I hurt you.”
“You married another woman while still married to me.”
“I wasn’t thinking.”
“You planned it for a year.”
He lowered his head.
Then he said something unbelievable.
“I think we can start over.”
I stared at him.
“You think you can cheat on me, marry someone else, lose everything, get divorced, and then simply come back?”
His face reddened.
“I was hoping you’d forgive me.”
“Forgiveness and reconciliation are not the same thing.”
For the first time, he looked genuinely defeated.
Then I asked one question.
The same question Melanie had once asked him in my driveway.
“Mark, if your job hadn’t fired you and if I hadn’t owned this house… would you even be sitting here?”
He opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
Because we both knew the answer.
No.
PART 5
A year later my life looked completely different.
The house was renovated.
The mortgage was nearly paid off.
I earned a promotion at work.
I traveled more.
Smiled more.
Slept better.
One afternoon I was planting flowers in the front yard when a moving truck stopped nearby.
A woman stepped out.
She introduced herself as my new neighbor.
