The Divorce

“I want a divorce!” Damien Daniels, her husband towered over her as he yelled. She had just come back from the hospital and was about sharing the good news with him. In her hand was the result of her pregnancy test and as she expected, she was pregnant. It came as a shock to her especially since her and Damien had only spent one night together which was infact a mistake. Not that it mattered to Harriett. To her, this was a way of solidifying their marriage.

“W-what are you talking about?” Harriett’s voice broke and her tone was unstable. She couldn’t believe her ears. Why now? Why was he suddenly bringing this up?

“You think I wouldn’t know that you’ve been sleeping with my brother?” He says and she staggers, her brows creasing as confusion spread through her face.

“Sleeping with Adrian? Why would you even say that?” She denies and he slams a picture on the table for her to see. She hurriedly picks it up only to drop it back with a scream.

“This isn’t possible!” She yelled. It was a picture of her and Adrian laying naked in each other’s arms on a bed. From the picture angle, it looked like they were being intimate. Adrian towered above her and the lady underneath him resembled her. She had never slept in the same room as Adrian so how was this possible.

Someone set her up!

With a frown, Harriett defended herself. “This isn’t true. It can’t be!” Damien didn’t want to hear any explanation from her. He felt betrayed and the only thing he wanted was for her leave his life.

“The picture is pretty clear, Harriett. Don’t you think you should give up? You must’ve thought you’d be able to keep it a secret forever. Why didn’t you just marry Adrian if you loved him so much? Instead, you’d rather go behind me and sleep with him.” Damien shot back, his voice not faltering.

“I don’t love Adrian. I never have. Why would I agree to marrying you if I was in love with your brother?” Harriett asked in a whisper, hot tears slipping out of her eyes.

‘I am in love you!’ was what she wanted to scream but she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

Harriett and Damien had been married for three years. Their parents were close friends as well as business partners, so it was no shock that they’d want their children to be together. It was a way of strengthening the family relationship as well as their businesses.

Because of this, Harriett and Damien have always known each other but just as friends. They knew from a young age that they were to get married and when it was time, neither of them had any opposition to the matter. Damien was like a brother to her who always protected her and looked out for her. Harriett secretly loved Damien although she never had the guts to tell him because she didn’t want to ruin the friendship they had.

Just when she thought he was beginning to love her, he had to leave New York to England for his University. During those years, she did her best to keep their friendship alive but she could feel them drifting apart slowly.

When Damien returned to New York, he was already twenty six years old and was to take over his father’s company. He had changed a lot in those few years, both physically and mentally. He was more mature, had larger biceps and was even more good-looking. He didn’t look like the twenty one year old boy she knew. He was no longer a boy but now a man.

Sadly, his looks weren’t the only thing that had changed during his stay there. His feelings for Harriett also changed and he was no longer affectionate towards her. Harriett saw all these before getting married to him but she chose to ignore it, thinking that things would change when they got married. Things didn’t change.

Unfortunately for Harriett, Damien didn’t return alone from New York. He came along with a lady, Evelyn James who he introduced to be his friend but Harriett understood that she was anything but a friend to Damien and he was only referring to her as his friend because of his father. On one occasion before their marriage, she caught them kissing in Damien’s office. Utterly heartbroken and betrayed, she took to her heels and made the decision to get over Damien. But, the heart wants what it wants, even if it is someone who has made it pretty clear that they want nothing to do with you.

Poor Harriett.

She would always make out time to pay Damien a visit. Much to her surprise, he never made her feel unwanted. He would talk to her as he would a friend but that wasn’t what she wanted. She wanted him to see her as a lady.

Time went by and Damien finally introduced Evelyn to the family as his girlfriend, betraying Harriett.

She knew that she was no beauty but Evelyn James wasn’t either. They shared the same boring long jet black hair and hazel colored eyes. The only difference between them was that Harriett was on the thicker side whereas Evelyn was as skinny a runway model. Harriett always wondered if she ever really ate.

Harriett wasn’t the only person that was betrayed and infuriated by Damien’s revelation. His father, Thomas Daniels was extremely furious and disappointed that he immediately threatened to take the company away from Damien if he didn’t break up with her. The fear of losing all he had made Damien obey his father and marry Harriett but he could no longer hide his hatred for her as she was the reason his relationship with Evelyn fell apart although Harriett knew that he never really broke up with her.

Harriett was happy that his father was still able to convince him to marry her. Call her selfish but she wasn’t letting another woman take Damien away from her. Not after all the years she had spent waiting for him. She was just twenty one when they got married and her heart yearned to be loved, especially by Damien.

For a few months, she didn’t see nor hear from Evelyn but she could feel her presence in Damien’s life from how distant he was. He never spent time with her, only coming home when she was already asleep and leaving before she woke up.

Harriett knew their marriage was bound to fail.

A year into their marriage, she met Adrian, Damien’s only sibling who had been away in Italy, studying. She had never seen him before but immediately he arrived in New York, they bonded and he became her only friend.

“I want you out of my life, Harriett. I don’t want to hear whatever excuses you have. Get your things and leave.” Damien coldly said. Water welled in her eyes as she realized that it was either now or never. She had to tell him how she truly felt. Perhaps, that would get him to change his mind.

“Please, Damien. I love you. I always have.” She dropped to the ground and lowered her eyes as tears flowed nonstop from them.

“I know. None of that matters, Harriett. I don’t love you.” Damien said with no emotion in his voice and slammed the papers against the table, causing her to shudder. Chills ran down Harriet’s spine at Damien’s statement that all she could do was stare at the document with a blank expression.

“You knew?” She whispered but to no one in particular. She knew that Damien didn’t love her but for him to say it out loud was something she didn’t prepare her fragile heart for.

Her lips parted but no words came out. She felt like her heart had shattered to pieces. Before she could muster the courage to speak, Damien clenched his jaws and began to walk away.

She wanted to beg him to stay because she knew where he was headed. She could already see him and his lover laughing at her ill-fate and rejoicing in their victory.

Instead, she watched him walk until she could see him no more.