Read 'Til Death - Part 2 for Free Online Page B

there to say? There’s nothing he could say or do that could make this better.
    “Katia?”
    At the sound of Candy’s voice, I turn. She’s got Penny in a stroller after taking her for a walk to the park up the road, and her face is pale. My eyes instantly dart down to my daughter, who is completely happy and content. I breathe a sigh of relief.
    “What is it?” I ask.
    “The strangest thing just happened to me.”
    I narrow my eyes. “Candy, you’re worrying me.”
    “Sorry. I was out with Penny, walking her in her stroller at the park. Anyway, we were looking at some birds when . . .”
    “Candy . . .”
    “I saw Marcus.”
    My entire world stops spinning. I press a hand to my mouth and begin shaking my head. No, he can’t have seen Penny. He can’t know about her. He can’t know she exists. Oh God, how could this happen? I should have never let Candy take her for a walk.
    “No,” she says quickly. “It’s not what you think. He still has no idea she’s his.”
    I blink at her. “I don’t understand.”
    “He was running. He saw me and stopped. I snobbed him as much as I could, but I didn’t get the time to block Penny. He looked down at her and said ‘cute kid,’ and then told me to tell you he’s waiting for your call, before running off.”
    Cute kid?
    Cute. Kid.
    I grind my jaw. He didn’t think she looked familiar? Like him, perhaps? This surprises me, considering just how like him she actually looks.
    “He didn’t click?”
    Candy shakes her head. “No.”
    “Jesus.”
    She nods, unbuckling Penny and placing her on the ground. My daughter crawls towards me. “I’m so sorry, Katia. When I saw him, I swear I had a heart attack.”
    “It’s okay. He didn’t notice, that’s all that matters.”
    There’s a strange, unfamiliar emotion running through my chest. A huge part of me wishes I could deny it, but the truth is, there’s a serious feeling of disappointment radiating in my body. He didn’t notice? He didn’t look into her eyes and just know she was his?
    “Katia, are you okay?”
    I nod, lifting Penny and kissing her cheeks. This is for the best. This man destroyed my life; I truly don’t want him to know about his daughter. I’m being childish. I’ve let a small moment affect me when it shouldn’t. I need to finish this, so I can move on before things become complicated.
    Marcus Tandem will not trap me again.

CHAPTER EIGHT
KATIA
    “W ould you like a coffee before we start, Mrs. Tandem?”
    I shake my head, my hands fumbling nervously in my lap. My eyes keep darting to the door, then back to my lawyer, then back to the door. I want to leap up and run, because running always seems like the easier option. I know it’s not, though. I know running won’t solve anything for me.
    “Then let’s begin, shall we?”
    I turn my eyes back to my young, rather attractive lawyer. He’s studying me with deep blue eyes covered by dark eyelashes and thick brows. He places his hands on the desk in a casual manner, as if that’s going to make me feel more comfortable about this situation.
    “Yes,” I say, trying to keep my voice steady.
    “You’re here because you want to divorce your husband, Marcus Tandem. Is this correct?”
    “Yes.”
    “And he has other ideas about it.”
    I close my eyes, taking a deep breath. “He doesn’t want it.”
    “Is he refusing to sign? Or refusing to leave in general?”
    “We’re separated, Mr. Chan, I assure you of that. We have been for over a year. He just won’t sign the papers.”
    He nods. “You’re aware that after a certain period of separation, he doesn’t get a choice? We can take the matter further, but in the end he won’t have much of an option. He can’t make you remain as his wife.”
    “The time period, is it twelve months?” I ask.
    “Yes.”
    “It’s been that long.”
    “Then I’ve got enough to send a letter to Marcus’s lawyer, giving them options.”
    “Options?”
    “Yes; he can sign the papers or we