Ethan pulled my hand, and I stood up abruptly, the towel wrapped loosely around my waist and falling to the ground. Gasps echoed across the poolside as it dropped, but I didn't care. Not today. Not after everything.
"I'm done entertaining this bullshit of yours!" he barked at me, his voice loud enough to silence the birds. "I'm done with these games you think you're playing. You're a wife, Tessa. A wife! You should have some dignity!"
My lips parted, but no words came out yet. He continued, his eyes sharp and full of fire. "I don't know why you felt the need to follow me here. You're just making a fool out of yourself. That's why I didn't invite you in the first place."
Something inside me snapped. The crowd, the noise, the humiliation. I couldn't take it anymore. My hand flew across his face with a sting that seemed to silence even the wind. The slap rang out like thunder. Everyone watching froze. No one spoke. No one intervened.
He let go of my hand, startled. For a moment, just a heartbeat, there was silence.
I finally found my voice. Tears welled up, burning hot in my eyes, and my voice trembled with hurt and fury. "I'm not the one who's on dating sites, Ethan. I'm not the one lying to women about being separated. I'm not the one who brought a mistress here, parading her around like a trophy, and you dare to talk to me about dignity?"
The words poured out like a river breaking through a dam. My chest heaved with every breath. "Excuse me!"
Behind me, I felt Lindsey shift. She stepped forward, standing tall like a storm ready to strike. Her fists were clenched, and her eyes dared Ethan to say one more word. He looked at her, his face contorted with disbelief.
"You told her about that shit?" he hissed at her, his voice low and venomous. "That was months ago. You didn't mean anything to me. We just went on two dates."
Another slap. I don't even remember my hand moving, but the second blow was louder than the first.
"You don't get to talk to my friend like that," I hissed. "Not now. Not ever."
Suddenly, Lindsey's boyfriend stepped forward like he had been waiting in the shadows. He did not say much. Just delivered one solid punch to Ethan's face. A loud, sickening crack echoed in the air. Ethan stumbled backward, holding his nose, blood trickling through his fingers.
"If you can't respect women, the least you can do is respect mine," Jordan said firmly.
Now Ethan was crouched slightly, breathing heavily, blood staining his shirt. His pride was shattered. But the damage wasn't only his.
I stood there, trembling. I didn't want this. I never wanted it to go this far. I didn't want a scene. I didn't want fists or slaps or gazes on me. I just wanted closure. Peace.
But peace felt like a distant memory.
Humiliation crashed over me like a wave. The heat of everyone's stares burned into my skin. My sandals were off, and in a daze, I grabbed them and ran. I didn't know where just away. Away from the crowd, away from the blood, away from Ethan's venom, and away from the version of me that had become someone I no longer recognized.
I could hear Lindsey calling my name. Once. Twice. But I didn't stop. The lake was ahead calm, blue, and unjudging. I ran toward it like it could swallow my pain whole. My feet slapped against the dirt path, tears falling freely now, streaking down my cheeks in angry lines.
I had loved Ethan once. Deeply. Madly. Maybe I still did in some dark corner of my heart. But I also hated him for what he did to us. For what he did to me. For turning me into this woman desperate, humiliated, angry.
I thought confronting him, laying everything bare, would free me. That by shouting the truth and slapping reality into him, I'd feel strong. Instead, I felt like I had nothing left.
Tears streamed down my face, blurring everything. My lungs ached, and my legs burned, but I kept going. Past the trees, through the gravel path, down toward the lake. I didn't even know where I was headed; I just needed to run away from that scene, from all of them, from him.
Everything felt like it was crashing in on me. The betrayal. The public humiliation. The way Ethan had made it seem like I was the problem when he had been lying for God knows how long. I thought I would feel relieved finally telling him off, letting the truth spill out.
But all I felt was empty.
The ache in my chest was overwhelming, and my head started to spin. My vision began to blur even more, and it wasn't just the tears. I couldn't breathe. I stumbled forward, clutching my chest as the world spun wildly around me. The trees, the water, and the sky all twisted together in a kaleidoscope of color and sound.
I could still hear Lindsey behind me. She was getting closer.
"Tessa! Stop! Please, just stop!"
But I couldn't. I didn't want to stop. If I stopped, I'd have to feel all of it. The pain, the betrayal, the shame. I just wanted to outrun it.
Then suddenly, the ground shifted under me. My legs gave way. My knees buckled. I tried to grab onto something, anything, but there was nothing around me but air.
Everything went black.