“And you seem to be totally over it. From what I heard, you’re having one hell of a good time.”

He was wounded because of what she’d said, and she could see why it might damage his ego. He wasn’t a bad lover, not by any stretch of the imagination. She couldn’t pinpoint what made today with Tobias so special, but she didn’t intend to talk about it. On some level, she supposed she was still stuck on the part of their conversation where he’d basically admitted that he’d been with at least one other woman—the part where he’d asked if she was getting even. When had he first been with someone else? And why? Hadn’t she been enough to satisfy him? How many women had there been? Had he begun to care about someone else? Was that how she’d lost him?

She had so many questions. But would it do her any good to ask them? What did it matter? He didn’t love her anymore. That was what had destroyed their marriage, nothing else.

She pinched the bridge of her nose as the conversation lapsed into another terrible, stilted silence. They were both angry and hurt. She thought he was ultimately to blame, but he probably thought she was.

“Where are the girls?” he asked at length.

“With Karoline at Disneyland.”

“They went to Disneyland? Without you?”

“Karoline offered to take them, so…”

“So you decided to stay behind and fuck your new boyfriend.”

The profanity made her feel cheap as well as stupid. Which was what he’d intended, of course. Maybe that was why she didn’t bother to tell him that Tobias wasn’t her boyfriend. She didn’t feel Axel had the right to know. “Is there anything wrong with that?” she asked instead.

He didn’t answer. Again, he seemed to be at a loss for words.

“Good luck on your tour, Axel,” she said. “As soon as you transfer the money, I’ll get those presents you mentioned for the girls. If you need anything else, it’d be better if you texted me. We really don’t have any reason to call each other anymore.”

“You’re hanging up?” He sounded stunned.

“What else is there to say?” she replied and disconnected.

As she sank onto the bed, she thought she’d cry some more. She usually wound up in tears after talking to Axel, and today had been emotional all the way around.

But, strangely enough, she didn’t feel the need. She was done trying to win him back. He’d taken her for granted for far too long, and the constant rejection had been torture. If she couldn’t fulfill him, maybe he should find someone else.