Craved By My Husband's Best Friend

Marissa POV

I stood in the center of our pristine living room, the space I had spent the last two years turning into a sanctuary.

Now, the silence felt like a predator. I was utterly bamboozled no, dumbfounded didn't even touch the edges of it. It felt as if the floor had suddenly liquefied, leaving me suspended in mid air with nowhere to land.

"What did you just say, Ethan?" I asked. My voice came out thin and brittle, like old parchment. My ears were literally reverberating with the echo of his words, a sickening rhythm that made my vision blur.

Ethan wouldn't meet my eyes. He was staring at his reflection in the floor to ceiling windows, his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his tailored suit. "I know it's not a proud thing to say, Marissa... but you have to know this. I cheated on you."

"Come again?" I whispered. My heart was hammering against my ribs so hard I thought they might crack. "I need you to say those words again, Ethan. I need to be absolutely sure I'm not having a stroke."

"I cheated, Marissa!" he snapped, his guilt finally curdling into a defensive, ugly rage. "I am sorry. I know I've f*cked up badly this time. I know I did! I don't even know what was wrong with me at the time, okay? It was just... it happened. And I sincerely feel guilty, which is why I am telling you now!"

"You feel guilty now?" I let out a sharp, jagged laugh that sounded like breaking glass. "What, Ethan? I can't believe you actually did this to me! What could that b*tch possibly have that I don't, huh? Tell me! Look at me and tell me!"

I stepped into his personal space, forcing him to look at the wreckage of my face.

"What qualities does she possess that I lack? Is it beauty? Charm? Is she better at pretending to love you?" I slammed my fists into his chest, each blow a release of the three years of devotion I had wasted on him.

"Ethan, I gave you everything! I even quit my job for you! I walked away from my career, my promotions, my entire identity, all just to become a stay-at-home wife because you said you wanted a home to come back to! You beast!"

"I am sorry!" he kept groaning, absorbing the hits without moving. "I am so sorry, Marissa. Please, just listen to me."

"Forgive? Did you just dare mention the word forgive?" I backed away, my chest heaving as I gasped for air. "Look at yourself. Are you even worthy of being in the same room as me right now? You're a stranger to me."

"I am sorry, Marissa. Just please, don't leave me, okay? I promise I will never do it again," he wailed, his voice cracking as he moved to engulf me in his arms. He tried to pull me into the warmth of a hug that