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“Look.” Hendrix took her hand into his. “I know I said five years, but do we really have to put a timeframe on it? We’re still young…”
“That’s not the point,” she seethed quietly, pulling her hand out of his. “You knew how important having a family was to me. I’m thirty-two years old, Hendrix. We’ve been married four years. What the fuck is the holdup?”
His nostrils flared and eyes closed as he pulled in a calming breath. Though they agreed to never curse at or yell at each other, Nobu was losing her patience. She was tired of having this conversation repeatedly and still feeling ignored.
“Why don’t we go out and just enjoy ourselves tonight, then we can talk about this in the morning?”
“No.” Nobu stood and walked over to the clear containers of Christmas decorations. “I’ve waited two weeks for you to devote time to decorating the house. You promised that we would do it today. I’m not putting it off anymore. Feel free to go without me. I’ll just do this myself.”
“I promised them that we both would be there.”
She laughed with a shake of her head as her eyes watered. “I don’t know why. You promised me we would finally spend time together and put the decorations up. You know how much this means to me…”
“And you know how much my career means to me.”
Releasing the silver ornament she was holding, Nobu sighed. Sitting Indian style, she massaged her temples and closed her eyes as a tear slipped down her cheek. Her entire body heated and heart raced as she considered her next words carefully.
“What are we doing, bae?” she asked softly, wiping her face. “It’s clear we aren’t on the same page anymore, and I don’t think we have been for a while.”
Hendrix ran his hands over his face as he released a hard breath. “C’mere, Bu.”
Nobu stood, taking small steps toward her husband. The man she swore was perfect for her. The man who had completed her. So much so that the distance between them felt like it was literally ripping his heart and soul from hers. She hadn’t sat down good before Hendrix was lifting her and placing her on his lap, and this time, the closeness eased her nerves.
“I think we’re at a phase in our lives where we’re getting fulfillment from different things. You know I love you, and I do want to have children with you, just as I said I did.”
“But…”
Hendrix smiled with the left side of his mouth. He squeezed her thigh as he sighed. “I’m getting an extreme amount of satisfaction out of my career right now. I’m on fire, and I don’t want to slow down. With that being said, it isn’t fair of me to force you to put your life on hold. I’m man enough to admit I haven’t been as present as I used to be, and that isn’t fair to you.”
Hearing him admit that caused Nobu to smile as her eyes watered all over again. Licking the corner of her mouth, Nobu nodded and cupped his cheek.
“I don’t want it to seem like I don’t support you. I’ve always been attracted to your ambition. But like you said, we’re getting fulfillment from different things and wanting to go in different lanes with our lives. I don’t want to make it seem like I’m not happy with you, but I want more than just you. This. Us. I want to be more than Hendrix Cane’s wife. I want to have my own cleaning business so I won’t have to work as many jobs, but I don’t want to quit altogether any time soon. I want babies. I want a husband that comes home at a decent hour so we can spend quality time together. I want…”
“Things I’m not capable of giving right now,” Hendrix interrupted to say. “So what are we going to do, Nobu?”
Tugging her bottom lip between her teeth, Nobu swallowed hard before hanging her head. “They say elevation requires separation.”
Hendrix’s body went limp underneath hers. “You… You want a divorce?”
“I don’twanta divorce, but I don’t know another solution that allows us both to have what we want.”
“Unfortunately, I agree.” His grip around her loosened. “Damn,” he grumbled before chuckling. “I failed you. I didn’t take you from your parents just to give you back, Bu.”
Wincing, Nobu’s entire body shook as her heart ached.
“Henny,” she cooed, lifting his fallen head to look into his eyes. “You didn’t fail me. Life just took you in a different direction than me. That’s nothing to be ashamed of. It happens.”
“Yeah, but we’re supposed to be doing life together.”
“We did. For four beautiful years.” Nobu chuckled as her tears began to pour rapidly. “I’ve never loved a man deeper than I love you. Never been loved the way you love me. And I don’t want us to ruin that because we’re on two different pages.”
Hendrix wiped her tears away as his own fell. “I’ll…” His phone began to vibrate in his pocket. Nobu’s mouth twisted to the side as their eyes remained locked. As she expected, he looked away first, pulling his phone out to answer. “Yeah?” He nodded at the words being said by the other person on the phone. “Yes, I’ll be there. Just me.” As he disconnected the call, Nobu stood, weakly making her way back to the center of the living room where the decorations were.
“I need to get ready to go, Bu.” She nodded. “I’ll um… call David and ask him to handle the di—” He released a shaky breath, unable to say the word. “I’ll pack a bag and stay at a hotel until we figure everything out.”
As tears streamed down her face, Nobu stared at the silver and gold ornaments. Licking her lips, she nodded. Her eyes squeezed shut as he walked away. Even with him closing their bedroom door, she heard his sniffles, and the sound of them had her body bending against the container as she broke down herself.
ChapterOne
