Chapter 3
When Genesis woke up, the house was still empty.
There was a message from Isaiah on her phone:]
[Baby girl, hospital’s been absolutely insane today. Had to bail on my day off please don’t hate me Tomorrow I’m 100% yours, I swear. Got something special waiting for you. Miss you so much it hurts-)||
Right below his message was a photo Sadie had sent an hour ago.
The two of them at some hot springs, posing by the pool edge, their smiles blindingly bright.
Genesis gripped her phone so tight her fingertips burned. She almost called him right then to ask if he was busy saving lives or busy playing house with his childhood sweetheart]
just texted back: “Okay.“[]
But remembering her plan, she swallowed her rage and ju
Actually, him not coming home worked perfectly–gave her time to pack
All the clothes Isaiah had bought her went into donation bags for charity
She took down their
sir photos from the walls and fed them through the shredder. [
All those little wish notes she’d written him over the years? She took them out to the balcony and watched them burn to nothing
She couldn’t throw away too much–didn’t want Isaiah
The next day, Isaiah finally showed up.
ting suspicious when he came back.
The moment he saw Genesis, he dropped the cake box and opened his arms wide, pouting like a little boy: “Babe, I’m dead tired. Need a hug to recharge-
Genesis casually stepped back. His arms closed around empty air.
Isaiah raised an eyebrow: “Still pissed? Come on, let me show you what I’ve been working on.”
Before Genesis could say anything, he was dragging her to the car.[]
They drove straight to the racetrack. Genesis was confused until he pulled her out of the car.
“You like it?”
Isaiah pointed at the vehicle in front of them.
It was a custom race car, every inch of it covered in pink diamonds that sparkled so bright it was almost blinding.
Genesis blinked in surprise. The club’s coaches stood nearby, voices full of envy.
“Theard this custom job cost close to ten million. Boss really went all out, huh?
“The money’s nothing compared to the work–you guys have no idea, Isaiah glued every single diamond on there himself. Man was up for like three straight days, thought he was gonna go blind.”
“Genesis, take it for a spin! Let us have a turn after–boss really spoils his wife.”
Listening to their chatter, that flicker of surprise in Genesis’s chest slowly sank. Her eyes started to sting.
She forced a bitter smile||
Everyone said he spoiled his wife. But who was the real “wife” in his heart?||
His love was intense as a su
as a summer fire, all right. Problem was, it wasn’t burning for her alone
All those emotions she’d been bottling up for days finally found their outlet[]
Genesis slid into the driver’s seat and floored it. The car shot forward like a rocket]
She tore around that track lap after lap, pouring all her hurt, rage, and frustration into the engine’s roar.]
Isaiah stood trackside, hands in his pockets, smiling as he watched her with unwavering focus
On the fortieth lap, she saw him make a heart shape with his hands. For just a moment, she lost her grip on the wheel
The car slammed into the barrier with a sickening e
crunch
A sharp pain shot through her toe. Before she could process what happened, Isaiah was already there, yanking the door open and scooping her up to carry her to the lounge
“Does it hurt?” He frowned, carefully lifting her foot, dabbing a cotton swab in iodine. “That is all my fault, letting you drive for so long.”
His touch was gentle as handling glass, his eyes full of worry that looked real enough to drown in.]
But Genesis just felt cold all over.
So love really could be performed this convincingly
She absentmindedly reached up to touch his hair, but Isaiah caught her wrist and leaned down to kiss her.
“BANG-”
The lounge door slammed open
- up. Isaiah grabbed a water bottle from the table and hurled it at the doorway
Without looking up.
“Get out!”
Genesic turned to look. Sadie stood in the doorway.
Only then did Isaiah look up, his expression shifting: “Sadie? What are you doing here?”
Sadie held her reddened forehead where the bottle had hit, hiting her lip as her eyes dropped. Her clothes were muddy and she looked like a complete mess.]
“Couldn’t hit the brakes in time during practice crashed. Came to get the first aid kit.”
Isaiah went quiet for a few seconds but ignored her, reaching for a band–aid to gently place on Genesis’s toe]
“Stay put, don’t walk around on that injured foot.“]
He brushed the hair from her face and pressed a kiss to her cheek. “I’m gonna check on her real quick, he hack in a few minutes. I’ll be right here in the hallway, just call me if you need anything“]
He grabbed the first aid kit and left.[]
The lounge fell silent–so quiet you could hear the wind outside]
A few minutes passed. Genesis slowly pushed open the door. The hallway was empty. So much for staying “right here“]
That flash of disappointment was quickly buried.
She should’ve seen this coming
Leaning against the wall, she limped toward the race car.
She really did love that car, and with the sky looking like rain, she wanted to get it into the garage
But when she reached the car, she suddenly stopped.]
The vehicle was rocking slightly, and muffled voices were drifting through the window that hadn’t been closed all the way.
