Page 8 of Love or Leave

"You know, Maria," their mom said, staring daggers across the table. "Marriage is a holy sacrament. And some people respect that sacrament."

Maria threw her hands in the air. "I'm married, Mom," she said in an exasperated tone.

"Youare…" she said, trailing off with a pointed look toward Antonio.

And there it was.

All of his mother's disappointment wrapped up in two words and one look.

The annoying thing was that he felt the same way as his mom. When he'd said “I do” to Fran, he'd meant it. He'd fully expected them to grow old and die together. What he hadn't expected was for her to fall out of love with him.

But then again, he'd been working eighty hours a week and barely saw her for all the years he was in med school and residency. Still, she knew he'd be going through all that when they'd gotten married.

Maybe they had just been too young.

That was the best explanation he had. Fran had blindsided him when she'd said she wanted a divorce. He'd finally felt as if the difficult times were behind them. They'd talked about taking a trip to Europe and starting a family and renovating their home, and next thing he knew, he was packing up his half his shit and moving out.

"Enough," Maria said, slapping her hand on the table and pulling him from his inner turmoil. "This is a birthday party, not judgment day."

His mother rolled her eyes as Antonio reached for his wine and took a deep drink.

He cleared his throat. "Actually, I was hoping to see Fran this weekend."

His mother sat up and so did her dark eyebrows. She glanced at him with cautious optimism on her face. "What?"

He braced himself and squared his shoulders. "I want you to send her an invitation to the party."

The second the words were out, his mother and sister both shot out of their seats.

"Thank God!" his mother said at the same time Maria yelled, "Hell no!"

Antonio pulled back from the table at the very loud response. He expected their reactions.

"I'll send it now," his mom said, pushing her chair out and backing away from the table.

She'd taken a single step before Maria nearly tackled her. "Not a chance, Mom," she said before turning to him. "Why, Tone?"

He took a deep breath and scrubbed a hand over his face. His stomach was in knots. "I want my life back."

"I know but—"

"I got the papers today," he said, the words heavy.

Maria went quiet.

"Fran wanted to get back together a few months ago, and I said no. But I've changed my mind. I'm not signing the papers."

Maria shook her head in disbelief. "You've been so miserable. How can you forgive her for this?"

Antonio expected Maria's disapproval, so her reaction didn't surprise him. In fact, he was pretty certain what she was thinking was a lot worse than what she was saying. But he'd already thought this through, and he knew the people in his family would think he was Fran's doormat.

He didn't care. He desperately wanted to put this whole mess behind him and move on.

When Maria realized he'd already made up his mind, she turned her piercing gaze at their mom. "You're actually okay with this?"

"She's my daughter-in-law, and her parents will be there, of course.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Why shouldn't she come?"

Maria let out a silent scream. "Because she broke Tonio's heart, for starters."

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