The shrill ringing of Emma's phone pierced the silence of her hotel room suite. She had been staring out the window, her fingers absentmindedly tracing the glittering diamond ring on her left hand. A symbol of her new life, her new identity as Mrs. Reynolds. And yet, the ache in her heart refused to dissipate, leaving her adrift in a sea of uncertainty.
With a trembling hand, she reached for the phone, her breath catching in her throat as the caller ID flashed a name she had hoped to never see again: Mark.
"Hello?" She answered, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Emma, thank god you picked up," Mark's familiar voice crackled through the line, laced with desperation. "I need to see you. Just give me a chance to explain, please."
Emma's grip tightened around the phone, her knuckles turning white. "Mark, I'm married now. You have to stop this."