Aaron didn’t answer audibly. He only slightly shook his head to indicate no. He listened intently as Christa continued recanting their story through her tears. The tears that were now soaking Aaron’s hands as they held her face. Her eyes, pleading with him, held his gaze steadfast, and he briefly wondered if she could read his thoughts. Without a conscious decision, Aaron’s thumb lightly grazed across her face and wiped away one tear as it fell from her eyes. It was quickly replaced by another.
“You picked out my rings—the diamond engagement ring and the diamond-circled wedding band. When you found them, you told me to always remember one thing.” Christa stopped talking for a second to try to control the sob that was threatening to break free.
Aaron furrowed his brow, his eyes pinched together in the corners, silently asking her what that one thing was while he continued to watch her with rapt attention. He allowed some small amount of emotion to shine through his eyes.
Pity. He pities me. If that’s what it takes to get through to him, I can endure pity for a short time.
“You said,” she started and stopped to swallow a sob. “You said if I ever gave these rings back to you, it meant I was giving your love back. You said if I did that, I’d never get your love back again. You told me to hold on no matter what happened—to hold on to our love and never give it back.”
Aaron’s jaw muscle ticked from the hard grit he held. His breaths were quick and shallow, uncertainty and mistrust marring his handsome face. But he couldn’t remove his hands from her face. Despite the terrible thoughts flying through his mind, he couldn’t break the connection with her once he touched her. Everything about her had been his weakness. Her purity. Her innocence. Her admiration of him. Had it all been a lie? His eyes could no longer conceal the upsurge of emotion that flowed through him.
When she noticed the change in his demeanor, a seed of hope blossomed in her chest that she was getting through to him. Perhaps he did remember but suddenly had cold feet when the weekend ended and reality hit him. One thought after another swirled through Christa’s mind while she tried to make sense of it all.
Did he have a change of heart?
Did he think getting married was a huge mistake?
Am I not good enough for him?
“Is this what you want, Aaron? You honestly don’t want to be married to me? You don’t want me at all?” Christa asked, leaving the tears to flow freely and her love for him to shine in her eyes.
Aaron maintained eye contact with her—gazing deeply into her eyes, looking for something, before his eyes followed the trail of her tears to where his hands cradled her face. He looked hard at the moisture gathered there. His gut told him one thing. This was no act—no one could cry that hard, that much, and be faking her feelings. It wasn’t possible.
“I think it’s best for both of us to end it now,” he finally answered on a whisper.
He noted that her tears increased after his declaration, and the warm glow that shone in her eyes was slowly extinguished. He watched in slow motion as she reached up, wrapped her small fingers around his large ones, and dragged his hands off her face. The immediate emptiness slammed into him, driving deep into his core. He was losing her, losing his love, possibly even losing his destiny. Something vitally important was gone instantaneously, something he feared he’d never feel again.
Life had been hard for Christa, but she was no shrinking violet. She’d never felt such pain and despair. She had no doubt it would take her a lifetime to heal from the blow he’d dealt, but she didn’t have it in her to roll over and give up. She reined in the minor breakdown Aaron and Lance had already witnessed, swallowed the broken heart that now resided in her throat, and straightened her spine.
“I’m not signing those papers,” Christa stated with firmness but was quickly interrupted by Lance’s angry growl before she could finish her sentence.
“We will see you in court in a couple of years, then!” Lance bellowed.
“I wasn’t finished!” Christa yelled back before returning her gaze to Aaron, instantly softening, but maintaining her inner determination.
“As I was saying, I’m not signing those papers. Draw up a new agreement. I don’t want anything from Aaron. I don’t want his money. I don’t want a house or a car or his gifts. I will agree to the divorce when you’ve taken all that out.”
Looking down at her hands, she stared at the beautiful wedding rings for what felt like an eternity. She was still close enough to him that she could feel the weight of Aaron’s stare on her like an iron anvil resting on her shoulders. From the corner of her eye, she knew he was also looking at her rings—the rings he chose for her. She mustered all the courage she could find as her right hand found her left ring finger. Her hands visibly trembled when she deliberately removed the beautiful diamond rings that symbolized their union.
Christa took Aaron’s hand in hers, turned it over, and placed the rings in the center of his palm.
“I’m not giving your love back to you, Aaron. You’re taking your love away from me. All your money, your houses, and your cars—they’re all just worthless junk to me without this,” she said as she closed his fist over “his love,” her wedding rings. “I won’t fight you over the divorce. If you don’t want me, don’t love me, there’s nothing to fight for.” For all the boldness she tried to project, inside she only felt defeated and crushed beyond repair.
Christa rose from her chair, and Aaron’s eyes followed her every movement.
