He did not try to turn the door handle or force his way in. He simply stood on the other side of the thin wood.
“Valerie,” he said softly through the door, his voice so gentle that it somehow made me feel even angrier than before. “I am not going to lose you now after everything we have accomplished and built together.”
pressed my forehead against the cool bathroom tile and closed my eyes tightly, trying to stop the tears. A moment later, there was a soft knock on the lower panel of the door.
I did not answer him, keeping my eyes shut tight. Then I heard the faint rustle of paper sliding across the smooth floor tiles beneath the door gap.
I opened my eyes and looked down to see a glossy photo lying on the floor. I picked it up with trembling hands and turned it over to see what it was.
Inside the frame of the picture was a photograph of a beautiful vintage ring. I recognized the unique design immediately, and my heart stopped in my chest.
It was my grandmother’s original engagement ring, the precious family heirloom that my aunt had been forced to sell nearly a decade ago during a terrible financial crisis. It was the ring I had cried about losing during my second date with Callum, a painful memory I had never mentioned to him again.
