Sam wiped his hands with the napkin. “Simone,” he began, “I think we should reconcile.”
This caught me off-guard. I thought he’d demand my kidney or a limb if I wanted to see that divorce paper signed. “Huh?”
“I’ll cut to the chase. Arianne and I have broken up.”
“Huh?” My mind was still boggled by his revelation.
“I found out that Arianne was only after my money. I’m sorry for what I did to you. I mistreated you terribly. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me. Please, take me back.”
For a long moment, I was speechless. “Sam, you hurt me.”
“I know, baby. That’s why I’m sorry. Please, forgive me. If you take me back, I promise I’ll be different. I’m a changed man, you see? I’ve been in counseling for my sex addiction. I even enrolled in an anger management class. I’m doing everything I can to be a better man—a better husband for you. You’re right. You’re always right about my affairs. I was wrong. I should have listened to you.”
I couldn’t believe what I’d just heard.
“What do you say that we end this silly divorce thing? Look, how about we take a romantic trip to Italy? You’ve always wanted to see Venice and Rome, right? Maybe we’ll buy a villa in Tuscany as our vacation home. I promise this time I’ll spend more time with you. I’ll take extra vacation time from the firm.” Sam fumbled with his jacket and presented me with a bribe—a big diamond rock set in platinum. “This is a token of my apology. One of the kind. Heart diamond. Helzegger picked this personally for me. He said a heart diamond this size was rare. It’s over nine carats and set me back a cool nine hundred grand.”
One thing I hated about Sam was that he always put a price tag on every present he gave me. He seemed to expect me to drop to my knees and thank him profusely because he gave me expensive things.
The pain in my heart that was slowly healing tore open. I cast him a look of disgust. “Sam, you’ve hurt me in a way that you couldn’t have imagined.”
“I know, I know.” He held up his hand. “What I did to you was unforgivable. I’m a changed man, baby. I promise. How about I buy you a new Benz?”
“Sam,” I said coldly, “it’s obvious you don’t know the word ‘unforgiveable.’ There’s no way I can come back to you.”
Irritation painted his face. “Is it because of how the partners’ wives have treated you? I know about it. I’ll have a talk to them and everything will be all right.”
“No. It won’t be all right. It’s over between us. Go back to New York with your fancy rock and fancy car and leave me alone. From now on, use my lawyer as a point of contact if you have anything to discuss with me.”
Sam didn’t seem to be taking me seriously. “Okay, I got it. What do you want, babe? I’ll give you anything you want. Anything. Just say it, and I’ll grant it. Just like that.”
“Fine. Sign that divorce paper.”
He laughed derisively. “Simone, are you turning down this nine-hundred-thousand-dollar ring?”
“Yes. I don’t want your stupid ring. I want a divorce from you.”
It took him a few seconds to digest the finality of my words. “Let me get this straight. You’d rather be penniless living in this dump than go back to New York with me. Simone, you aren’t making sense. You can’t survive alone. I’ve always taken care of you.”
“You forgot that I put you through law school working odd jobs. I can take care of myself, thank you very much.”
“This is crazy talk. You don’t mean it.”
“I’ve had enough. My lawyer will contact your lawyer.” I stood, reaching for the car keys.
Sam snatched my hand and stared at me evenly. “You’ve changed. What’s happened to you?”
“It’s called growing up, Sam. Plus, I don’t buy in to your bullshit anymore. We’ve been through this scenario so many times. You’ve never changed, and you never will.”
“No. This is something else.” Sam searched my face. “Did you sleep with another guy?”