“You didn’t mean to get caught.”
His face tightened.
He tried another angle—the one that used to work.
“I miss you,” he said.
I nodded once.
“I miss who I thought you were,” I replied.
Silence.
Then he whispered, “Can we start over?”
And that’s when I felt it.
Not anger.
Not temptation.
Relief.
Because I knew my answer without effort.
“No,” I said softly. “We can’t.”
His eyes filled with frustration. “Why are you doing this to me?”
I didn’t flinch.
“I’m not doing anything to you,” I said. “I’m simply no longer saving you from the consequences of your choices.”
He stared at me like he’d never heard a woman speak that way without apologizing afterward.
Then he did something that told me I made the right decision.
He snapped.
“You think you’re better than me now?” he spat.
I smiled—small, calm, unbothered.
“No,” I said. “I think I’m free.”
I closed the door.
And I didn’t feel guilty.