All Chapters of The Husband I Once Loved: Chapter 101

**Chapter 104: Paris Calling**The penthouse felt different now. Not colder, exactly—Khalid still paid the bills, and the staff still moved through the marble halls like silent ghosts—but emptier. Like someone had come in while I slept and removed all the color I’d once painted into these walls.I stood in my studio on the east side of the apartment, the one room that had always been mine. Late afternoon light spilled across the wide oak floors, catching on fabric swatches and mood boards pinned to the far wall. My fingers traced the edge of a watercolor rendering I’d done for the Tribeca townhouse. The client had loved it. The photos from the near-complete renovation had been trending on design blogs all morning. Yet the satisfaction I once craved felt muted, like applause heard through thick glass.My phone buzzed on the drafting table. Marcus.I hesitated before answering. His voice always carried that calm confidence, the kind that made compli