CLARA

He turned on his heel and marched out, the heavy door swinging shut with such lethal force it could have easily undone the hinges.

I stood there, stunned.

The silence returned, but this time it was heavier. I felt lonely in a way I hadn't felt in years. Julian didn't love me; he didn't even like me. That was nothing new. I was more like a prop in his theater of power. And he had just told me, in no uncertain terms, that I was a failure as a woman because I didn't "track" my body well enough for his schedule.

Even if it had been a made-up lie,...