“And I’m sorry I’m not better at hiding it. You shouldn’t feel guilty about my shortcomings. I’ll trade with you tomorrow and every day afterward for as long as I can find clothes. Deal?”
“Deal.”
“And for the record, I don’t think I’ll always be afraid of fey. Spending time with you is helping.”
This time, his hug wasn’t nearly as subtle, and I grinned into his chest, only feeling a smidge of guilt for the contact. Yes, I was married. But I wasn’t doing anything wrong. I wasn’t having improper thoughts. And considering the questions they’d asked me today, neither Azio nor Groth were having improper thoughts. They were simply curious about humans in general.
Azio jumped over the wall and deposited me inside before leaving. I hurried home, anticipating the stunned reactions of my housemates and husband when I showed them what I’d obtained. However, when I arrived home, I didn’t receive the greeting I expected.
The meager pile of my possessions waited on the table along with Wayne’s wedding band. He’d smashed it flat, so it wasn’t wearable anymore.
Setting the backpack aside, I picked up his ring, too dazed to know what to think. In all our years together and all our fights, even the one about the vasectomy, he’d never taken it off.
A slight sound from the doorway leading into the kitchen let me know I wasn’t alone.
“I’m sorry, honey,” Grandma said softly.
“Where is he?”
She shook her head slightly, and I narrowed my eyes.
“Wayne, don’t you dare hide from this.”
Grandma stepped back, and Wayne strode in.
“I’m not hiding. I was giving you a chance to leave quietly.”
“I’m not leaving.” I grabbed the backpack and opened it to dump the three packages of steak on the table. “Real meat, Wayne. That’s what I brought to the table. What did you bring, other than a smashed ring and a temper tantrum?”
His face flushed red, and his hand snaked out to grab mine. I was so shocked by the aggressive move that I didn’t understand what he was going after until he started tugging on my rings. They hit my knuckle before I thought to fist my hand.
Wayne pried at my fingers, and I hit at his shoulder as he bent over my hand.
“What is wrong with you?” I demanded.
“Nothing. It’s what’s wrong with you.”
He won the rings free and immediately backed away.
“You’re not the woman I married anymore, and this is as close to a divorce as we can get.”
“Those aren’t your rings. Those are mine from my grandmother because you were too broke to buy me anything, remember?”
His eyes narrowed, and he tossed them at me. They pinged off my chest and fell to the floor.
“At least I didn’t throw them in your face like you seem to enjoy doing,” he said.
My lips trembled as I bent to pick up the rings, but I refused to give in to my tears. Divorced. My insides felt like they were bleeding. After everything I’d done and given up for him, he wanted to divorce me at the end of the world? Where had I gone wrong? What was wrong with me?
“I’ll move my things in with Sam,” I said, scooping up my pile of clothes.
“Unbelievable. Sticking around isn’t going to change my mind,” Wayne said.
“The housing is assigned. Where else do you think I can go? I’m just as much stuck with you as you are with me.”
“Why don’t you run off with one of your fey? Brooke found somewhere else to live easily enough.”
My mouth dropped open, and before I could figure out how to reply to that, he stormed out the door.