Chapter 3

Caroline told Bridget she was getting a divorce and wanted to set up their firm, "Phoenix Arch," in San Francisco. Bridget, ever loyal, asked no questions and immediately started making arrangements. The name felt right. A new life rising from the ashes of her old one.

For the next week, Caroline lived in a blur of activity. She bought books on modern design, building codes, and business management. She spent hours online, studying the work of top architects, her mind once again buzzing with the creative energy she had suppressed for years. She felt a part of herself, long dormant, waking up.

She didn' t call Blake. She didn' t visit the hospital. She ignored the texts from his mother demanding to know why she wasn' t by her husband' s side. She was building a firewall around her heart, brick by brick.

A week later, on the day of their third wedding anniversary, Blake came home. He found her in the home office, surrounded by stacks of books and blueprints.

He looked surprised. "What' s all this?"

"I' m going back to work," Caroline said, not looking up from her drafting table. "Bridget and I are starting our own firm."

"That' s... great," he said, though he sounded more confused than pleased. He was used to her life revolving around him. "I guess you won' t have time to make my post-surgery recovery meals anymore."

Caroline finally looked at him. Her gaze was cool, distant. "No. I won' t."

He remembered how she used to fuss over him, a tiny papercut earning his hand a bandage and a week of her worried attention. Her sudden indifference was strange, but he dismissed it. He was tired.

"Well, I support you," he said, the words feeling hollow even to him. "It' s good for you to have a hobby."

A hobby. Three years of marriage, and he still saw her lifelong passion as a hobby.

"Blake," she began, her voice low. "If I said I wanted a divorce, would you fight it?"

Before he could answer, his phone rang. He glanced at the screen. It was Ariana.

"Excuse me," he said, walking into his study and closing the door.

Caroline could hear the low murmur of his voice, the gentle, soothing tone he never used with her. She didn' t need to hear the words. She knew. She turned back to her blueprints, her resolve hardening into steel.

Later that evening, he emerged from the study. "I' m taking you out for our anniversary," he announced.

She agreed. There was one last thing she needed to see.

He drove them to a fancy downtown restaurant. He pulled up to the curb. "I' ll go park. You go on in."

She got out of the car and watched him drive off. A few minutes later, he returned, not alone. He was holding a huge bouquet of white gardenias and a beautifully wrapped gift box. For a dizzying second, her heart stuttered. He had never given her flowers. Not once.

"Blake..." she started, a flicker of some old, foolish hope igniting within her.

And then Ariana appeared at his side, linking her arm through his.

"Caroline! So good to see you," Ariana said, her smile bright and triumphant. "Blake told me you were joining us to celebrate my gallery' s successful relaunch. It' s so sweet of you."

The flicker of hope died, turning to ash.

Blake didn' t seem to notice Caroline' s frozen expression. He smiled at Ariana.

"These are for you," he said, handing her the flowers and the gift. "A little something to celebrate."

It was for Ariana. Of course, it was for Ariana. The dinner, the flowers, the gift. She was just the third wheel. A prop in their perfect love story.

"Oh, Blake, you remembered," Ariana cooed, burying her face in the gardenias. "They' re my favorite." She unwrapped the gift to reveal the diamond necklace he had been so excited about. "And this... it' s the exact one I pinned on my inspiration board last month. How did you know?"

"Just a lucky guess," Blake said, his eyes fixed on Ariana, a soft, loving expression on his face.

Caroline felt the air leave her lungs. She was suffocating. She reached out and took the bouquet from Ariana' s hands, forcing a smile onto her face.

"Let me hold these for you," she said, her voice a strained whisper. Her hands were trembling.

Ariana beamed. "Thank you, Caroline. You' re such a good wife."

The words were a mockery. Caroline knew then that Blake hadn' t just brought her along. He had used her. He had used their anniversary as a cover to celebrate with the woman he truly loved. She was not his wife. She was his excuse.