He grunted at her, slurping his coffee noisily. ‘You’re not happy,’ she began. She waited for him to confirm what she already knew, but he stayed stubbornly silent. ‘I’m not happy either. I haven’t ever been happy with you, and I suspect you feel the exact same way. So why don’t we just call it a day and go our separate ways?’ Vanessa said in a rush, stumbling over her words in her haste to get them out before he cut her off. But he didn’t. He didn’t even speak. He simply picked up his nearly full cup and flicked his hand, and suddenly she was covered in near scalding-hot coffee. It was soaking through her top, burning her. Pulling it quickly over her head, she threw it onto the ground. Her hair dripped, and coffee covered her face. Trying to wipe down her chest, already feeling the searing pain of the burn, she knew she needed to get cream on it straightaway in case it blistered. She went to leave.

‘Don’t.’ His voice was low, and she risked a quick look at his face. His brows were lowered and knitted together.

She froze.

‘Know why I don’t leave your worthless ass? It’s because I live for moments like these. Moments where I can make you feel miserable, hurt, alone. Moments like this when I can make you feel like the disgusting slut that you are. No one will ever want you if I leave you. Everyone remembers what you did. Seduced me, then deliberately got pregnant.’

She wanted to remind him that he was the only man that she’d ever slept with so how could she be a slut, but now didn’t seem like the right time to point that out.

‘Besides, I’d never skip out on my wife and child. I have a reputation to protect.’ She wasn’t sure what reputation he was trying to protect, but, whatever.

‘Just leave us, Mark. You can finally go and be with Maggie. A real couple. Just like you used to be.’

‘You know about Maggie?’

‘Yeah, I saw her today and she confirmed it.’

‘Good, I hope it hurts.’

‘The only thing that hurts me around here is you. I’ll take the kids and leave you. I’ll go back home if I have to.’

‘You said “kids”.’ His eyes narrowed.

Her face paled. ‘No I didn’t, I said “kid”. Wren. I meant Wren.’