Chapter 289
Ellie’s POV
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By the time I returned home, my rage had built to a blinding degree. My vision had turned red, and it was a miracle I made it back without driving my car off a cliff, because it definitely crossed my mind on a couple of occasions.
My hands shook as I put the car in park and breathed through my nose, trying and failing to calm myself.
I couldn’t stop thinking about the look on Dominic’s face. That jealous rage, blotting out all sense of propriety until he thought it was appropriate-actually appropriate-to barge into a meeting, take a pen from my hand, and cause a scene in front of
everyone.
Like I was some kind of unruly child to be controlled and manipulated.
I looked down at my trembling fingers. My palm still stung faintly from the slap. Any wife should regret hitting her husband, but right now, I didn’t feel regret at all. I wished I had hit him harder. I wished I had stood there and told him exactly what he had done in my past life, why I didn’t trust him as far as I could throw him, and why this whole marriage had been doomed from the
start.
More than that, though, I felt like a goddamn fool.
Because there had been moments leading up to, during, and even after our wedding where I had convinced myself, even if only for a few seconds, that he could be different. That this time around, things might not end up the way they had before.
It was naive of me to ever think that way. Perhaps this life had a slightly different flavor to it, but the overarching themes were
the same.
In my past life, Dominic had been cold and distant, never treating me like his wife but rather like a burden. In this life, he treated me like something to control and belittle and beat down until I turned right back into the meek, terrified little girl I was before.
I should have known it would end up this way. The moment I had woken up in this life, I had made a personal vow to be different from the way I was before; rather than quiet and subservient, I had done everything in my power to be too loud, too much, too
difficult to control.
Dominic didn’t like that. It wasn’t in his nature to let that happen. So instead of ignoring me like he did before, he was doing
everything in his power to cage me.
Because, deep down, he had always wanted exactly what I was before. A small, downtrodden wife to use as he saw fit. Not an equal. Not a competitor.
With a huff, I flung the car door open and climbed out. My ankle protested as I stormed up to the house, but I hardly noticed the pain. Inside, I headed straight to my room, already going over what I planned to pack. I wasn’t exactly sure where I was going, but I knew I just didn’t want to be here.
I’d made it halfway down the hall to my room when I heard it.
“Ellie.”
I stopped, shoulders tensing. Then, against my better judgment, I turned. Vivian was coming out of one of the rooms down the hall, her hand still on the doorknob.
“What do you want?” I snarled.
She placed her hand over her chest. “Must you always be so cold toward me, sister?” Shutting the door behind her, she walked over to me, stopping a couple of feet away. Her eyes flicked over me slowly, like she was assessing me. “You look… frazzled,” she said.
I scoffed. “Understatement of the century.”
“What happened?” Vivian tilted her head. Then, seeing the look on her face, she said, “This is about Dominic, isn’t it?”
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I rolled my eyes and turned, but I didn’t get to take a step before she spoke again.
“It’s such a shame how one little picnic can ruin everything.”
I froze.
Slowly, I turned. I noticed the knowing look in her eyes immediately. I knew Vivian well enough to be able to tell exactly when
she was up to something. And this time, I didn’t even think she was trying to hide it.
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