Chapter 1

I’m Ellen Thornton, née Cassidy. I’m a successful divorce attorney that has made a pretty good living off of other people’s marriage misery. I met my wonderful husband, Jim, in my office as he signed the divorce papers. His ex wife had traded up for rainbows and unicorns offered by another man. The moment my eyes met Jim’s, my heart was his. He was unaware and my legal duty was to represent his wife in the divorce, so I watched from afar as this marriage went the way of so many.

They had been married fifteen years and he loved her. I saw the hurt in his eyes as he signed the papers on the lines I had marked. Angela had rushed into this divorce with her eyes closed and I told her as much. Even so much, as telling her, it’s not too late to undo the damage you’ve done. But her new man was forcing the issue to get into her panties as he had a number of other women in her office. She had been the lone hold out, refusing his advances until the pressure was too much. She finally caved to his attention.

During the final waiting period, I didn’t act on my strong feelings for her soon-to-be Ex. I really gave her every opportunity to reconcile and put her family back together. After a few months, it was obvious my client was still in the honeymoon stage with her new lover so I called Jim and asked if he would meet me. We had a few lunch dates but I still saw that he was hurting over the loss of his family and would be for sometime.