Divorcing The Arrogant Ice Hockey Star

Chloe POV:

The anesthesia wore off, and I woke to a sharp pain in my abdomen. The white ceiling, the smell of antiseptic, the cold IV in my arm-it wasn't a nightmare.

I turned my head. The room was empty. Sunlight streamed through the blinds, casting lonely stripes of light on the floor.

My phone sat on the bedside table, its screen dark. No missed calls. No messages. Landon hadn't contacted me once.

I wasn't surprised. I was almost relieved. I held no more expectations for the man who had coldly told me, "Don't cause more trouble for me."

Nurse Knight came in. She smiled warmly when she saw I was awake. "You're up, Ms. Sullivan. The surgery was a success. You need to rest now."

I managed a weak smile. "Thank you, Ms. Knight. And you can call me Chloe."

Nurse Knight checked my incision and vitals, her touch gentle. "You're very brave, Chloe. Facing all this alone." Her eyes were full of pity.

I shook my head. "I'm not alone," I said.

Then I picked up my phone and dialed my best friend Elara.

She answered almost instantly. "Chloe? You haven't answered my texts all night, what happened?" Elara's frantic voice crackled through the speaker.

A lump formed in my throat, the dam of my composure about to break. I took a deep breath, keeping my voice as steady as I could. "Elara, I need your help."

I quickly told her everything—the ultrasound photo, the pain, the emergency surgery, Landon's phone call.

There was a long silence on the other end, followed by Elara's explosive roar. "That asshole! Where is he? I'm going to kill him!"

"Don't, Elara," I stopped her. "Now's not the time. I need you to do a few things for me."

My voice was unnervingly calm. It was as if the Chloe who had begged for love had died on that operating table, and a new soul, one who fought only for herself, had survived.

"First," I said, "I need you to submit my resignation letter to the team's foundation. Effective immediately."

I had worked there for four years as an employee, a pathetic attempt to have a legitimate place in Landon's world.

Elara paused, then understood. "Done! You should have left that damn place ages ago!"

"Second, find me an apartment. Fast. I don't want to go back to that house."

"No problem," Elara said instantly. "Leave it to me. You just focus on getting better."

After we hung up, Elara's housekeeper, Rosa, a kind-faced Mexican woman, arrived at the hospital carrying a thermal flask.

"Miss Price sent me to take care of you," she said, her voice warm. "She said you need nourishment after your surgery."

I sipped the warm chicken broth, the heat spreading through my body, chasing away some of the chill. It was the first warmth I had felt in two days.

My doctor, a serious-looking man named Dr. Evans, came by. He told me the ruptured cyst was dangerous and I was lucky to have gotten to the hospital when I did.

He frowned, looking at my chart. "Your emergency contact is your husband, Landon Knight? Does he know about your surgery?"

"He's busy," I replied calmly. "And we won't be husband and wife for much longer."

Dr. Evans gave me a look but didn't press further, just advised me to rest.

The next two days passed in a blur. Elara visited every day, updating me on the apartment search. Landon had vanished from my world.

I scrolled through the sports news on my phone. The headline read: "NHL Star Landon Knight's Late-Night Rendezvous with Rumored Girlfriend Isabelle Sterling, Is a Reunion Imminent?"

The accompanying photo showed them swarmed by reporters, Landon protectively shielding Isabelle behind him.

I looked at the picture, at the fierce, protective expression on his face that I had never seen before. I felt nothing. Not even a flicker of pain. I almost found it funny.

I turned off the phone and looked out the window. The New York sky was high and blue.

On the day of my discharge, Elara and Rosa came to get me. Elara gave me a huge hug. "Welcome back, Queen."

I got into her car without a single glance back at the hospital.

The car didn't head towards the home I had shared with Landon. It went somewhere new.

Elara pulled up in front of a luxury apartment building in Manhattan and handed me a key. "You're staying with me for now. I've got you."

I held the cold key in my hand, but a fire was burning inside me. I had given up on Landon, and I had given up on the pathetic woman I used to be.

My new life started today.