Page 13 of Best Kept Vows (Savannah’s Best #6)

Three years ago, I’d have said without hesitation that I’d do whatever it took to make my marriage work—now, I found that I was tired of wanting what I couldn’t have.

I was tired of Boone Metals taking over my husband and marriage.

I was tired of waiting for Sebastian to find his way home and to me.

“Alright.” I heard her inhale sharply. “I’m putting David on the line.”

“Why?”

“Because he’s a divorce lawyer. ”

My heart slammed in my ribcage. “What? I haven’t said a thing about?—”

“Just so you have the facts, in case it comes to that,” Miranda cut me off gently.

“Talking to a lawyer doesn’t mean you’re asking for a divorce—it means you’re protecting yourself and your kids.

I believe Sebastian will try to take care of you, but let’s be honest: his family made you sign a prenuptial agreement, and from everything I know about them, they’ll fight tooth and nail to make sure you get as little as possible.

And Sebastian? He doesn’t exactly have the best track record when it comes to standing up to them. ”

I had been shocked when Abraham had put the pre-nuptial agreement in front of me when I was at their home for Sunday freaking dinner a few days after Sebastian announced our wedding date. Dolly and Coco had taken Sebastian away under some pretext, and I’d been ambushed.

“I’d like to talk to Sebastian about this.”

“Just sign it if you want to marry him.” Abraham held a pen, his tone stern. “You say you don’t want his money, then prove it.”

“My brother-in-law is an attorney, Abraham. I never sign anything until I read it and get him to look it over.” I took the papers he had presented to me and stuffed them in my bag.

“You’re all the same, aren’t you?” Abraham sneered.

“I don’t know who you mean by all , Abraham, but you have no idea who I am.”

What had happened to that girl? The one with that kind of chutzpah ? When had that fire been beaten out of me?

I had told Sebastian about what his father did, and he’d shrugged and told me that he didn’t care what the damn contract said.

“I love you, and you love me. We’re never getting divorced, so who cares what that fucking thing says.”

He hadn’t told me not to sign it, though, so I asked David to take a look.

He made some key changes—especially around custody and provisions for the children—that, surprisingly, Abraham didn’t object to.

He never said it outright, but I got the distinct feeling that if I took the kids, he wouldn’t have minded.

They had my blood in them, after all, and that seemed to matter more to him than anything else.

“Lia, darlin’, how are you?” David’s calm voice came through the Bluetooth speakers in my car.

“I don’t know how I am.”

“I can imagine. So, I know Miranda wants to kill Sebastian, but I don’t think he’d ever cheat on you. Will he behave like an imbecile who misses your graduation ceremony? Hell, yeah. But he wouldn’t cheat on his vows. I know him well enough to know that.”

David was the calmer one—and his words soothed me. He was right. I knew my husband; I knew what he was capable of, and fucking some woman who wasn’t me was not it.

I looked out of the windshield at the city’s historic streets bathed in the soft glow of streetlights, not looking forward to what awaited me at home. Another fight? Another argument? Cruel words on both sides?

How had we gotten here ?

“Thanks, David.”

“Okay, so because my wife hounded me, I went through your prenup again, and here’s what I can say. The Boone family lawyers did a good job protecting their assets, as you’d expect. Boone Metals stays completely off-limits so that you won’t get any shares or equity, but you already knew that.”

“Yeah, I did.” The Boone legacy had always been fiercely guarded.

David continued smoothly. “However, you’re entitled to substantial alimony based on the length of your marriage—twenty-two years is significant, Lia.

The prenup states clearly that you will receive a monthly spousal support payment sufficient to maintain a lifestyle similar to the one you’ve had during the marriage, at least until you remarry or until either of you passes away.

Additionally, since Tristan and Ada are adults now, custody won’t be an issue, but if they’d been minors, the custody clauses would have strongly favored you. ”

I pressed the button to open the garage door.

Were Sebastian and I heading for divorce? Oh God! I was suddenly having trouble breathing. I turned the car off and closed my eyes because I was afraid that we were not going to make it as a couple.

He paused briefly, his voice softening. “The prenup also stipulates a lump sum payout, tied to a percentage of the value of Boone Metals at the time of divorce. It’s capped, but it’s generous enough that you wouldn’t have to worry financially.

It was one of the concessions Abraham agreed to when I insisted on revising it. ”

I drove the car into the garage.

“Considering how the company is doing…I doubt it’ll be significant.” I closed my eyes and exhaled slowly. “Thank you, David. I appreciate you doing this.”

“Hey, chin up. This may never happen. I’m hoping it doesn’t. Sebastian isn’t going to let you go, I know that much.”

“But what if I want to leave?” I asked, feeling miserable.

“Oh, darlin’. I’m so sorry this is so hard for you,” he said sympathetically.

After we ended the call, I sat in my car for a long time, feeling both sad and empowered.