Evelyn worked hard through the day, determined to make up for lost time, but this time, she made sure to leave with the crowd. No way was she risking being attacked again. She walked out with Arianna, her reliable partner in banter and sarcasm.
"Hey, where's Dane?" Evelyn asked as they exited the building.
Arianna turned to her with a sly grin. "Why? Don't tell me you're into him too!"
Evelyn rolled her eyes. "Absolutely not—"
"You are! You totally are!" Arianna interrupted, her voice rising with mock excitement. "You're always calling him weird and mysterious, and now I get it—you're secretly in love with him!"
"No, I'm not," Evelyn groaned, exasperated. "I'm just asking because I saw him this morning, and then he vanished. That's suspicious, right?"
Arianna shrugged. "It's Dane. Being weird and mysterious is, like, his whole personality. Honestly, I kind of love that in a man."
Evelyn cringed but decided not to comment. She didn't have the energy to debate Arianna's questionable taste.
When they stepped outside, Evelyn froze. There he was, leaning casually against his car as if he didn't have a care in the world—Eric. He wore a red leather jacket (Man he loves those jackets ), black pants, and his signature sunglasses. Why was he always so...extra?
"Is he still wearing those sunglasses?" Arianna asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah..." Evelyn muttered, her annoyance already bubbling to the surface as she walked toward him.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, crossing her arms.
Eric didn't even bother looking at her. "You know why I'm here. Don't act like you don't."
So arrogant. Evelyn's patience was already wearing thin.
"That's no way to talk to your wife—I mean, ex-wife," Arianna chimed in, her tone dripping with sass.
Eric finally turned to look at Arianna, tilting his head slightly. "And who are you again?"
Big mistake.
Evelyn shot Arianna a pleading look, silently begging her not to escalate things. The last thing she needed was drama between these two.
Arianna sighed loudly, clearly irritated. "Fine. I'll see you tomorrow," she said, giving Evelyn a quick hug.
As Evelyn hugged her friend back, she caught a glimpse of something—or rather, someone. Red. Dane. He was standing at a distance, staring directly at her. His gaze was intense, almost unnerving, and before she could process it, he was gone, disappearing like a shadow slipping into the night.
Weird.
Evelyn let go of Arianna, her mind lingering on the strange encounter. Arianna smiled at her but shot Eric a pointed glare of irritation before walking away. As always, Eric remained completely unbothered, his face unreadable behind those ridiculous sunglasses.
"Typical," Evelyn muttered under her breath, turning back to face the man who, despite everything, always managed to be exactly where she didn't want him.
______
The drive was long and oppressively silent. Eric's unusual quietness hung heavy in the air, almost suffocating. Evelyn could feel his tension radiating off him, and hy she didn't need to guess why. Oh, he was still mad she ran off earlier. She rolled her eyes and turned to stare out the window, unwilling to engage.
"I almost lost that case, you know," he finally said, breaking the silence. His voice was low, but the irritation was clear.
"Well, I missed my meeting," she replied flatly, refusing to turn toward him.
Eric abruptly slammed on the brakes, jolting the car to a stop. Evelyn's head snapped toward him as he turned to face her, his jaw tight and his eyes burning with frustration.
"You are always so selfish," he said, his tone sharp.
Evelyn let out a bitter laugh, unable to believe her ears. "Excuse me? I lost my meeting. Missed my chance entirely. You almost lost your case—not even close to the same thing. And you're calling me selfish?" Her voice rose with every word, the anger bubbling up inside her.
"Yeah," Eric shot back, his voice rising to match hers. "You couldn't just stay put for once. Just once! Instead, you had to run off to that stupid job of yours."
"Stupid?" Evelyn's voice cracked with indignation. "Just because something isn't important to you doesn't mean it's not important to me! You always do this—diminishing what matters to me like it's nothing." She turned away, biting back the lump forming in her throat. This was exactly why their marriage fell apart. He always put himself first, never seeing how much it hurt her.
Eric didn't respond. Instead, he reached into his jacket, pulled out her wallet, and dropped it into her lap without a word. Then he started the car again, his expression unreadable.
Evelyn gripped the wallet tightly, her hands trembling as tears pricked the corners of her eye's. No, she wasn't going to cry. Not because of him. Not again. Not ever.
She turned her head back to the window, staring blankly at the passing scenery. The silence between them was louder than any argument. Loud enough for her to not hear her own heart breaking again