The Wife He Was Too Embarrassed to Introduce (Marriage in Crisis, Grovel & Redemption #23)

Laurel

I was good enough to be his wife when we had nothing, but apparently I stopped being good enough once he became successful.

I loved Pierce Redmond before the money, the luxury developments, the important connections, and the rooms filled with people whose approval suddenly mattered more to him than mine.

Back then, he was proud of me. He used to pull me to his side and introduce me as his wife as though those were his favorite words.

Then the invitations stopped coming, the dinners became “business only,” and the photographs no longer included me. Little by little, I began changing myself—my clothes, my jokes, and the way I spoke—in the hope that I could fit into the polished world my husband had entered.

Then I discovered the truth: I hadn’t been left off the guest list. Pierce had left me off it.

So I went anyway.

When someone looked at me standing beside my husband and asked who I was, Pierce had every opportunity to tell the truth. Instead, he smiled and said, “This is Laurel. We’ve known each other forever.”

Not his wife. An old friend.

I waited until we were home before asking him one question.

“How long have you been single?”

I can forgive a lot from the man I promised forever to, but I don’t know if I can forgive my husband for being ashamed to call me his wife.

Now Pierce is about to learn that saying he’s sorry is the easy part. Convincing me to come home will take a whole lot more.