“How could you cross that line knowing there’s no going back? And drag me and our kids down with you. How could you do this to us? To me?” he demands, his voice rising again. “How long have you been lying to me? How long have I looked like a fool? How long have you been fucking him and then crawling back home to me?”
I want to say something. But there are no words that could make this better. Nothing that could undo the damage.
Jacob’s composure slips. He starts pacing back and forth like a caged animal. Then, without warning, he grabs a vase from the counter and launches it across the room. My heart stops. I stand there frozen, watching it explode into millions of little pieces, the sound cutting through the silence.
I flinch, my breath catching. And for a split second, I’m back with Ryan. But I'm not with him. I'm with Jacob… my husband. I stare out the window, hoping to ground myself.
Jacob doesn’t say anything. He just charges out of the room and slams the front door.
And I’m left here in silence, surrounded by the wreckage of my marriage, my life, everything I once believed to be true.
But even after everything—after what he did, even if he never wants to speak to me again—I’ll never tell a soul. Not for him. For my daughters. Because no matter what he did, he’ll always be their father. And if the truth ever got out, it wouldn’t just destroy Jacob. It would destroy them.
So I’ll carry this secret to the grave. Not to protect him, but to protect my kids. I’ll lie to everyone. Even Dylan. And I’ll let him believe I did it.
Why doesn’t this feel like the end, though? All I feel is this strange sense of dread. Like somehow, the worst is still coming.
Chapter 42: Is This the End?
Dylan: October
“Can we talk? It’s important.”Jenna’s text. No context. No explanation. Just five words that land like a punch to the chest. It’s been days since we last spoke. No more nightly check-ins. No thinking of you texts. Just silence. Excuses not to see her. And me pulling away. Not because I want to. Because I have to. I can’t live in her limbo anymore.
My heart pounds as I type:Okay. Meet you in an hour.
I lace up my runners, yank on a baseball cap, and barely make it to the door before Krueger barrels into me. Tail wagging, tongue flopping, like I’m going away forever.
“Hey, buddy,” I mutter, rubbing behind his ears. “Wanna hear something pathetic?”
He just stares with those wide, trusting eyes. “I fell for a married woman. Hard.” My voice is low and bitter. “SomeoneI had no business loving. Because she was never mine to begin with. And she never even said it back.” I swallow the knot in my throat. “But she made me feel again, made me believe I was worth more than one-night stands and a lonely future.”
Krueger licks my hand, rolling over, asking for belly rubs. Simple. Loyal. Uncomplicated. I envy him.
At the ranch, it’s quiet, the sun filtering through the trees like any other day, but my nerves are shot. Jenna’s already there standing in the doorway. Green sweater. Hair loose. She’s breathtaking, as always.
She steps forward, arms open for a hug, but my body stiffens.
“We’ll talk,” I say before she can speak. “But let me go first.”
I lean against the wall, eyes fixed on the wood beams next to us. If I look at her, I’ll never get through this. “When I said you’d steal my heart, Jenna, I was wrong. You didn’t steal it—I gave it to you, willingly. Every goddamn piece.”
I pause, the words sticking in my throat. “And I wanted you. Not because you were off-limits. But because you filled spaces I didn’t even know were empty. But you shouldn’t have to. And you sure as hell shouldn’t be breaking yourself into pieces just to give me one of them.”
Her fingers curl into the fabric of my shirt. When I finally glance at her, she looks wrecked. Good. So am I.
“I know it’s wrong to be with someone’s wife,” I continue. “Holding on to pieces of you like they’re mine to hold. I’m not just disrespecting him. I’m disrespecting myself.”
She opens her mouth, but I need to finish.
“So I’ve been backing off. Giving you the space that you need, even if you won’t admit it.”
“I’m sorry, Dylan,” she says, her voice breaking. “For dragging you into my mess. You shouldn’t have pieces. But believe me, you have my whole heart. Always have. And so much has happened since—”
I take her hand. “Wait. Can I show you something first?”
Inside the barn, Wobbles is curled up in a pile of hay, clueless to the chaos she’s about to soothe.
Jenna's face lights up. “How?" she gasps. "How did you find her?”
