e, his jaw tight. For a second, a flicker of fear crossed his face. Mark,

C'mon, everyone knows yo

But I didn't let up. I just sat there, a serene smile on my face,

ehead, her face pale. "I'm not feeling well," she whisper

. She stood up and hurrie

g. "It's work," he announced to the table, his voice strained. "An emergency. I

ves at the table said, trying to fill the silence. "Ev

h. He expected me to believe his pathetic lie. He expected me to

for a rude

ation, I excused myself. "I think I'll go check on

the rooftop bar, my eyes scanning the perimeter. From a darkened corner, through a lar

h-a high-powered listening bug Josiah had procured for me. Small enough to be unnoticeable, powerful enough to pick

d turned it on. Their voices fi

, laced with frustration. "Sneaking around, hiding. I want t

n. Just a few more days. After the wedding, after the scandal, and after s

tend to be her loving little sister while you're still

ded to destroy her reputation completely. You were the one who said we needed the fake v

them discuss my murder so

hty, looking down on everyone. She deserves it. At the wedding, when they p

absorb every poisonous word. I calmly reached into my clutch

tred, their greed. When they were finally done, I switched of

ter, my phone ra

sorry about that. A server at the company went down. I'm taking Dar

my voice as sweet as honey. "I

before my eyes. He had left me here. Stranded. In his mind, I w

moments, the grand gestures. It was all a lie. True affection, I realized, didn't always shout from bi

exit. I would take a taxi. I would go home and sleep in the gu

ub, the cool night air felt good on my skin. A sleek, black

got out of the car and walked towards me

e a low rumble. "He said Edward had alrea