Divorce to Destiny: Reclaiming My CEO Husband
My CEO 136

136 So Frustrating (Winona)

The past week has been a whirlwind of emotions. Jayden's recovery is progressing well, and he's now able to sit up and has taken a few steps on his own. He's been allowed to go home to continue his recovery.

This should be a time of joy and relief, but I feel a knot of anxiety in my stomach.

I glance at the invitation in my hand, my heart sinking. "Engagement Party for Jayden and Winona!" it reads in bold letters. My stomach churns. Anne gave it to me. I knew nothing about this party.

I find Jayden in the living room, talking animatedly with Lance. He looks up, smiling when he sees me, but his smile fades when he notices the look on my face.

"Winona, what's wrong?" he asks, his eyebrow raised.

I hold up the invitation, my hand trembling. "What's this, Jayden? An engagement party? You didn't even ask me!"

enge pay shi

Lance awkwardly excuses himself, sensing the tension. Jayden's expression shifts from concern to frustration. "I thought it would be a nice surprise. I wanted to celebrate us, our future."

"A surprise?" I echo, my voice rising. "You think throwing an engagement party without talking to me first is a nice surprise? Jayden, this is a huge decision! You can't just make plans like this without me."

He runs a hand through his hair, his own frustration bubbling over. "I wanted to do something special for us. I didn't think you'd over-react like this."

"That's the problem, Jayden," I say, trying to keep my voice steady. "You didn't think. You just assumed I'd be okay with it."

I thought things would have changed. But this is the exactly what the old Jayden would do, before our car accident. I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt, but this triggers a lot of reasons why I resisted being with Jayden in the first place.

"I don't see what the big deal is really. We're having a party anyway." He shrugs.

"You didn't consider my feelings, my opinion. You made decisions for us without including me." I try to remain calm because I know he's not one hundred percent yet.

His face flushes with anger. "I thought things had changed for us. That we're together now, we love each other

"Loving you doesn't include you never consulting me about things that concern us both. That's what you used to do before we had the car accident. I never liked it then, I don't like it now."

Nonsense. Things are very different now." His voice raises a pitch.

"Are they?" 1 challenge, my heart pounding. "Because right now, it feels like nothing has changed." Jayden's eyes darken, and he takes a step closer, his voice low and intense. "I love you, Winona. I'm trying to make things right between us. I've been completely honest with you. Can't you see I've changed?"

+25 BONUS

136 So Frustrating.

"I appreciate your honesty," I say, my voice breaking. "But it isn't enough if you don't respect me and my opinions. This is our life, Jayden. We need to make these decisions together."

He clenches his fists, clearly struggling to keep his temper in check. "I just wanted to do something nice. I thought you'd be happy. Why do you always make things so difficult?"

I take a deep breath, trying to calm the storm inside me. "I appreciate that, but you need to understand that we're a team. You can't make these big decisions alone. I'm not being difficult, it's a very reasonable request."

The room falls silent, the aftermath of our argument hangs heavily between us. Jayden looks away, his jaw tight. "Fine," he mutters. "We'll cancel the party. Whatever."

I shake my head, feeling a pang of guilt. "It's not about canceling the party, Jayden. It's about us communicating and respecting each other. We need to work on that if we want this to last."

He nods slowly, the anger in his eyes replaced by a look of resignation. "You're right. I'm sorry, Winona. I should have talked to you first. Consider the party canceled. Just let me know what you want and I'll do it."

I reach out, taking his hand in mine. "I want you to just include me in things that involve us both. We both have things to work on emotionally. Let's take it one step at a time."

He frowns and his hand goes to his head.

"You need to rest. You've been overdoing things."

"Lance and I are still going over the company finances. I don't have time to rest," he snaps.

I look at him and tears prickle my eyes. "There's no need to use that tone. I'm trying to see you take care of yourself. But, of course, you always do take care of yourself." "What's that supposed to mean?"

I just shrug and walk away; the invitation stays on the chair. I just can't right now. I have Abby to pick up, Anne is getting ready to leave and go be with Bobby and Sarah.

I'm trying to get my business with Phillip up and running.

There's a lot on my plate without trying to help a man who clearly doesn't want to be helped. Let him-work it out for himself. He's not a baby and I'm not putting up with him acting like a spoiled brat.

He can still be a decent human being. Just because he doesn't get his own way is not a reason to take it out on me. If this is how he's going to be, he can damn well go be alone again.