Chasing His Rejected Wife
Chapter 46 -

There's something about having your own pathetic misery captured in pixel form that puts things in perspective. That's usually the moment you realize how you've deluded yourself into a false sense of peace in the midst of a sinking ship that is determined to take you down with it.

For me, it had dawned on me, as I stared at the photos on Aiden's phone, high quality images of my husband and the love of his wife. It had felt like the love that shone through their expressions mocked me and the truth hit me like a splash of icy cold water and I realized just how I've been clinging to the sinking ship that was our marriage.

And that it was time to let go, or I would drown and there would be no one to rescue me from a disaster of my own making. How had I let myself get to this point? How had I managed to convince myself that my marriage could be saved, that the baby would somehow, miraculously fix everything.

I always mocked those kinds of women who made excuses for their sleazy husbands in the face of blatant cheating. Women like my mother, who stayed married despite being deeply unhappy.The kinds who remained stuck in a miserable marriage simply because they were scared of going through motherhood alone or facing the world on their own.

"Jessica?" A voice broke into my thoughts. I started and looked around. A tall brunette dressed in a well tailored black pantsuit approached me from the direction of the elevators, the heels of her four inch stilettos struck the marbled floor in a quick rhythm. She came to a stop before me, with a soft smile. "Jessica Brown?"

I nodded and scrambled to my feet. I recognised her from the quick search I'd done while I was still deciding on replaceing legal counsel. An old friend of mine, who had recently got a divorce had recommended her with lots of effusive praise. "Yes?"

Her smile widened and she held out a hand. "Hello. I'm Eden Bradshaw, we spoke on the phone earlier. I hope you haven't been waiting long?"

"Not at all." I said, warmed by the friendly air about her and shook hands. "It's nice to meet you in person."

"Same." She gave me a quick once over and nodded. "Shall we go to my office? We can do the initial assessment there and we'll decide the next steps."

"Of course," I agreed, but remembered and hesitated. "Do you mind if we hold on just a bit? My friend went to the ladies."

Fortunately, Anna emerged from the restroom at that moment and after another quick round of introductions, we followed Eden up to her office. The office in question was a spacious corner office, beautifully furnished and gave up a comfortable aura.

"Please, take a seat." She offered, with a wave towards a set of four plush tan armchairs.

Anna and I exchanged looks and she must have picked up on my nerves because she caught my hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

Her words helped immensely and I shot her a grateful smile, tension easing from my body. We took the seats Eden had indicated and I tried not to bounce my legs nervously, my palms felt sweaty and my mouth dry. I wished I had thought to bring along a water bottle.

Eden crossed to her desk and picked up a yellow legal pad and a fountain pen and came to take one of the remaining chairs. She set her writing materials on the side stool and crossed her legs.

"Before we start, would you like something to drink? There's coffee, tea, juice and water."

"Tequila?" Anna asked, looking hopeful.

"That can be arranged." She replied, grinning widely and I felt myself relax further.

"I'll have some water, please." I piped up and Eden nodded then picked up her phone and sent a text, her red polished nails flying expertly over the screen.

"It'll be here in a moment." She said and set down her phone. Then she leveled me a searching look, her head tilted to the side. Then she leaned forward. "In the interest of full disclosure, I will start by admitting that after we spoke on the phone, I did a little bit of research on you...it's something I usually do with all my potential clients."

I wiped my sweaty palms on the fabric of my pants, feeling my anxiety heighten once more as my brain kicked into overdrive as I wondered what sort of impression she had formed about me after seeing those photos.

As though she could read my thoughts, she chuckled wryly. "Oh don't worry. I've been in this field for over 10 years and there's very little that surprises me anymore. Whatever bad impressions you think I have of you, I can assure you that it's quite the opposite."

"Thank you." I said just as the door opened and a secretary came in carrying our drinks.

A bottle of mineral water for me, coffee for Eden.

And a shot glass of Tequila for Anna. I shook my head in exasperation as Anna exclaimed in delight at the drink and quickly downed the shot, looking immensely satisfied.

"I don't know about misconceptions, but you've certainly blown away any of mine about stuffy law firms out the water." She told Eden.

"Glad I could be of service." Eden winked. Then she turned serious once more and looked at me.

"So, let's start." She picked up her pad and pen, poised to take notes. "I'll need to know about your marriage in general, how you two met, got married, anything you can tell me will help."

I took a moment to gather my thoughts while I drank some water. Then after a deep breath, and an encouraging smile from Anna, I launched into my story.

I told her everything I could, the circumstances of our forced marriage, Aiden's promise to divorce me as soon as his father died, Elisa, the contract clause, and our attempt to patch up the marriage when I discovered I was pregnant. Several times, I had to pause, when I became too overwhelmed and emotional. Eden handed me a box of tissues, but kept mostly silent, listening intently and occasionally taking notes.

When I finished, we passed a moment of silence, then Eden cleared her throat gently. "First off, I'm sorry you had to go through all that." There was genuine sympathy in her tone and I felt my throat tighten with fresh emotion.

It felt nice to receive such real sympathy, especially from someone whose job was to please her clients. Since the news had hit the media, I had gotten phone calls from family - well, Aiden's family, friends and even people I barely knew, all alike, all of them prodding for more information under the guise of feigned sympathy.

And after one particular call from a woman who claimed to be from a popular social media platform, asking if I was willing to do an interview to 'air my side of the story', I'd stopped answering my phone altogether.

And each time, my resentment and anger towards Aiden grew. He'd tried to contact me on the phone several times, but I didn't want to talk to him. At least he had the good sense not to darken my doorstep again and for that I was grateful. Because despite the anger I felt, I didn't trust my resolve. I wasn't sure my resolve wouldn't weaken if I saw him again.

Eden carried on speaking and I pulled my thoughts back to the present. "From what you've told me, it seems Mr. Brown might resist signing the divorce papers when he's been served because he wants to keep the family intact for the baby. Am I right?"

"Yes." I replied through the pit of dread in my stomach. "What do I do if he refuses?"

"Then we'll simply file a divorce petition on the basis of infidelity. In that case, his consent will not be necessary as long as we can serve him a copy of a court approved petition and get him to appear in court. Then also prove before a judge that he was unfaithful to you - and there is more than sufficient proof of that."

"Once you give me the go ahead, I can get that started by tomorrow morning."

I lowered my gaze to stare at the patterns on the floor, a million thoughts running through my mind. It felt like I had been presented with a big red button and all I had to do was push and the walls of my marriage would come crumbling down.

"Can she take some time to think things through?" Anna, who had been quiet, now asked.

Eden nodded in understanding. "Of course. Jessica, you can take as long as you need, there's no rush. And you should know that even after we file, there's still lots of chances to change your mind."

"I understand," I said, and touched my belly gently. "What about custody? I'm willing to agree to some form of shared custody with him, but I don't know how he'll respond."

"Then he'll likely get his own legal counsel and we can sort all that out." She paused and tapped her pen on the notepad. "I would advise to keep face to face contact to a minimum, at least with one or both attorneys present."

We talked for a while, and by the time our hour was up, I felt so much more at ease. "I think we should start the process."

Anna passed me on the back. "Atta girl. We definitely need to celebrate."