been a long, empty stretch of road. My body was exhausted, a deep, weary ache settling into my

f his words, to the complete implosion of my reality. I collapsed onto the cool ti

knew, the faint sound of David' s voice drifted up

ice was ho

s saying. "Yes, Thomas was so excited abo

dd

tenderness in his voice, the easy affection... it was a performance I had

s weekend. I promise,"

ambled to my feet, splashing cold water on my face, trying to erase th

m, folding laundry, my mo

. He placed his hand on my forehead, his touch now feeling

oked so real, so genuine, it almost made me doubt what I had hea

" I said, my voice soundin

ly, his thumb stroking my cheek. "I' m sorry I w

he lie. I deci

ooking him straight in the eye. "You said you had

t it for weeks, a huge, company-defining trip. But he had ju

ossed his face before he smoothe

lan. The Chicago team is ready for me. It' s the final push. Once this is ove

He was going to spend the weekend playing happy family with his real w

a hug. I stood rigid in his arms, my body screaming to pull away.

, so meaningless. They

know." I decided to push a little harder, to see how deep

," he sai

apphire necklace. The one we saw at the auction prev

e. I knew for a fact, from a stray comment I' d overheard from the gallery owner, th

action of a second. His eyes dart

gh. "Of course. A beautiful choice. Consider it don

wife' s possession, and promised it to me without hesitation. He would just buy me something

so his lips landed on my cheek. "I' m reall

derstanding. He tucked me into bed, kissing my forehead with a

y eyes wide open, listening to his footsteps fade away. The man I had marr

A new message. It wasn't from Dav

shook as

n a display case, but lying against the pale skin of a woman' s

oto was a sing

person, don' t you think

e. She knew. She knew David was with me, and she was tauntin

part that still clung to a sliver of hope,