Chapter 41

"He's my husband now, and I won't let you ruin that. I will do whatever it takes to protect my relationship."

Carmela's heart sank. She couldn't believe that Nichole could be so cruel, so ruthless. 

She thought they had been friends, that they had cared about each other. But now, she saw that Nichole had only ever cared about herself.

But before Carmela could say anything else, she heard the click of the call ending. Nichole had hung up on her, ending the conversation as abruptly as it had begun. 

Carmela felt like she had been punched in the gut, like the wind had been knocked out of her. She dropped her phone to the floor, the sound of it hitting the ground echoing in the empty room.

As Carmela sat there, numb and reeling from the conversation, she heard the sound of the front door opening. 

She looked up to see Andrew standing in the doorway, a look of concern on his face.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his voice gentle. "You lo