this book is getting close to the end yall i always get emotional when i finish one of my books

also i love jenna okay and she is in no way a brat irl it's just for the plot

+ +

Josh walked out of his apartment, shutting the door behind him and making sure it was locked. He hiked the strap of his bag higher on his shoulder, and walked to the elevator. Pressing the button, Josh checked his phone for any messages from Audrey (and, although he'd never admit it, Tyler). He stepped in when the elevator opened, and pressed the lobby button at the bottom.

The apartment building isn't a very tall one, and Josh is on the second floor, so the ride down is short. Josh was on his phone when the elevator pinged, and he walked out with his gaze on his phone, hoping that he doesn't trip.

He got about two steps in before somebody grabbed his wrist, jerking the phone out his grasp, Josh almost dropping it. Josh looked up, irritated and about to yell at whoever it was to watch where they're going, but stopping when he saw who it was.

Josh yanked his wrist out of Tyler's grip, and he glared up at the man. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Tyler's gaze was pleading. "I want to explain."

A snort came from Josh, and he began to walk again. He tried to ignore Tyler, but the billionaire easily kept up. "I don't want to hear it. Leave me alone."

"Why'd you block my number?"

"Hmm, oh, man, I don't know, maybe because you have a wife and you never told me?!" Josh snapped.

Tyler sighed. "Okay, so it was my mistake for not telling you I have a wife - "

"No, it was your mistake for having a wife and still trying to get another partner." Josh interrupted.

"Alright, fine, but listen - "

"I don't want to hear it."

"Just let me expl - "

"What part of 'I don't want to hear it' do you not understand, Tyler?" Josh shouted, whirling around and giving Tyler a smoldering look.

Tyler stared at him for a second, and he bit his lower lip. "We're getting divorced, Josh."

That caught Josh's attention. "What?"

"The papers," Tyler explained. "They're divorce papers. She cheated on me, a few months ago."

Shocked, Josh stood there with a dumbfound expression on his face. " . . . why did she say she was your wife then?"

"She wants to suck out as much money as she can from me." Tyler replied. "She's technically still my wife, legally, until I finish signing the papers. I don't want to, because she'd take quite a lot of me and my dad's fortune."

Josh really didn't know how to respond to this. "Well, I still don't see why you couldn't have told me you were getting a divorce. Nobody apparently even knew you were married! Why would you keep something like that a secret?"

"I had gotten married to Jenna so my dad could own part of her dad's business. It didn't feel real to me. I wasn't happy." Tyler said in defeat. He hesitated before reaching out and grabbing Josh's wrist, touch soft. "Don't go," he mumbled.

Josh's gaze dropped to where Tyler's hand was on his wrist, and he pulled away. "I think it's best we go our separate ways, Tyler."

Tyler didn't put up a fight this time, letting out a soft sigh. The two stood there for just a little bit, on the sidewalk and disrupting the steady flow of people walking.

"Okay." Tyler said finally. "I'll see you around, then."

Josh nodded, his eyes staying on the ground. Tyler turned and walked back to his car, the chauffeur waiting patiently. "Bye," Josh whispered, although Tyler didn't hear him.

After watching Tyler get in the car and drive away, Josh inhaled a deep breath, held it, then let it out. He walked to the parking lot, getting into his car and driving to work.

+ + +

Josh had been painting since the morning, a simple painting that was really more to just pass the time. He had finished the kitten piece for his boss, and now just had two hours left of work to go through.

His phone rang, and Josh dried his hands before grabbing it and answering.

"Hello?"

"Did Tyler come talk to you today?" Audrey asked, sounding puzzled.

"Oh, I'm great, A, thanks for asking." Josh rolled his eyes.

"Did he or did he not?"

"Yeah, he did. Why?"

"He's really quiet today."

Josh fell quiet, biting the inside of his cheek. He picked up his brush again, and continued stroking along on the white, rough paper. "Is he?"

"Yeah. Like . . . 'I tried to get my ex back but they don't want me anymore' quiet."

"Thanks for the detail."

"No problem. He's also been really unfocused. He'll just stare off into space at times."

"Why are you telling me this?" Josh sighed.

"Because I'd like an explanation as to what happened."

"He came to see me this morning, told me that he and his wife had been getting a divorce, asked me to stay, and I said no." Josh answered.

". . . So he's being a depressive fucker because somebody doesn't want him?" Audrey was quiet for a little bit. "Actually, I get emotional too when somebody doesn't want me around, so nevermind."

A quiet sigh escaped Josh. "I kinda wish I hadn't told him no," he admitted.

"Why did you tell him no then? If he went over to apologize, like actually in person, I'm pretty sure he actually, like, cares. Like, I would've just sent a text and if they answered, cool. If they hadn't, I'd have probably blocked that hoe."

"Speaking of hoes, how's that Ashley chick?" Josh grinned.

"Do not try to change the subject, Dun." Audrey paused. "But she's doing great, by the way. Anywho, I have to go. Mr. 'The-Guy-I-Was-Banging-Doesn't-Want-Me-Anymore-So-I'm-Gonna-Be-Depressed-About-It' has stuff for me to do."

"Okay, A, bye." Josh heard Audrey's farewell, then ended the call. He set his phone down, glancing at it to shut it off. When he returned to his painting, he froze. In intricate swishes, while he had been talking on the phone, Josh had done a painting with soft, light hues; he stared at it, at the big, brown eyes and the fluffy brown hair and the plump, pink lips.

"Oh, for fuck's sake." Josh grunted, grabbing the canvas and stomping over to a corner of his office, where a big trash can was. About to shove it in, Josh paused, hesitance coursing through him. He stood there for a little while, debating whether to throw away the painting or not. After a moment of deciding, Josh instead stepped over to a closet where he kept a lot of old paintings. He set it inside there, and stared at it for a little bit before returning to his seat.

He had another hour and thirty minutes to kill, so Josh got out another canvas, and continued to doodle mindlessly.

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the ending was so cliche but everything about this book is cliche so don't @ me