A Divorce He Regrets

Chapter 198:

I closed my eyes for a moment, shaking my head as the memory clawed its way back.

Her hands were rough, her grip firm. The way she cornered me in the laundry room, her breath hot on my neck, made my stomach churn even now.

“You stick with me, pretty girl, and no one will touch you,” she’d said, her voice low and laced with menace.

And I’d let her.

Let her believe she owned me because it was the only way to live. Nights spent lying in her bunk, sleeping with her, feigning the fact that her touch didn’t disgust me were nights I wasn’t afraid of being stabbed in the dark.noveldrama

She was useful, though. She had connections, and she was tough. Tough enough to forefend anyone who crossed me. Tough enough to help me escape.

I shivered, the cool night air doing little to numb the shame that memory carried.

“It was about survival. It’s over,” I muttered to myself, my voice barely audible. “It’s done.”

It had been a few days since I broke out. The first flush of freedom had worn off, replaced by the gnawing realization that time was running out. Laying low wasn’t an option anymore. If I wanted to make my move, it had to be now.

I glanced at my reflection in the cracked mirror of the sun visor of the dingy car I’d had help getting. The woman staring back at me looked tired, worn down, but determined. I readjusted the face mask I had been wearing in public, making sure it covered enough to keep me unrecognizable. My hair was pulled back and tucked neatly under a dark cap; my clothing was plain and blended into the crowd without drawing attention.

“No more waiting,” I told myself. “It’s time.”

𝘾𝙝𝙚𝙘𝙠 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙘𝙚 𝙖𝙩 𝙜ⱥ𝗅𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝘀﹒ⅽ𝗼𝗺

The moment I stepped inside the bar, my eyes automatically locked onto the entrance as Dominic’s entourage began filing through. My pulse quickened when he came into view—he was everything I wanted in a man: money, power, influence, and the looks to stop traffic. I couldn’t help but smile to myself as I watched him.

Alex had been a mistake. No, scratch that. Alex had been a stepping stone. Dominic Graham? He was the main prize.

Alex’s betrayal stung, sure, but Dominic was my way to take everything I deserved.

I leaned back against the bar, my eyes never leaving his face as he greeted his clients with that easy charm of his. He looked effortless, like a king holding court.

There was this little voice inside my head telling me, Forget Alex. This is your chance.

And it was.

Dominic Graham wasn’t an upgrade. He was my revenge.

Raina.

Even thinking her name made my stomach twist. For years, I’d lived in her shadow, always second-best to her perfect little halo.

The memories played in my mind like a cruel film reel—the orphanage, where everyone flocked to her as if she were some kind of savior; college, where she excelled without even trying.

No matter how hard I worked, how much I tried to emulate her laugh or her poise, it was never quite enough. People always saw right through me, but they never questioned her. She was untouchable. Perfect.

I stared into my drink, the ice clinking softly against the glass as I swirled it. “You didn’t win then, Raina,” I muttered under my breath, my voice low and venomous. “And you’re not going to win now.”

She thought she had it all: Alex, Dominic, the Graham name, the estate. But she had no idea what was coming. I’d take it all from her, piece by piece. Just like I took Alex.

I smiled to myself at the thought. She probably didn’t even recognize me. That was the beauty of it. She didn’t see me coming, didn’t remember the quiet, overlooked girl always in the background.

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