“Allison, listen to me.”
I raised my hand and slapped him.
The sharp sound echoed through the boutique.
The girl gasped.
Mark stood frozen, one hand against his cheek.
I had never hit anyone in my life. The moment I did it, I felt shocked by my own anger.
But I couldn’t stay there another second.
I turned and walked out of the store.
I made it to my car before the tears came.
I sat behind the steering wheel, unable to start the engine, sobbing so hard that my chest hurt.
The T-shirts I had bought for Mark lay on the passenger seat.
I stared at them through my tears.
Even after our argument, even after all the doubts that had been eating away at me, I had still thought about him. I had still bought him something because I wanted him to be happy.
And he had been standing in a jewelry store, putting a diamond ring on another woman’s finger.
