Chapter 12

I blink, startled.

Remember him? I’m not likely to forget the night we shared together, but that can’t be what he means. That just happened not all that long ago. He has to be referring to something else.

But… what?

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” I say. “Have we met somewhere before?” I have no recollection of that. Someone like Miles, I feel like I would remember.

Miles studies my face for a long moment. “Could I be mistaken? Wasn’t it you?”

With how much pain is clear in his face, I wish I could offer him an answer that would be satisfactory. Unfortunately, he’s remembering something that I cannot. I couldn’t tell him if the person he remembers is me or not, because I still don’t know what he’s referring to.

“Tell me when,” I say. “Maybe I can help.”

My words seem to wake him from whatever daze he trapped himself in. We start dancing again, though I notice, he’s added a few inches between us now. I mourn the closeness we once shared, even as I acknowledge the distance is for the best.

When the dance ends, Miles releases me.

“Just give me a hint,” I say, reluctant to walk away. This could be the last time we ever get to talk like this. “If you tell me what you are referring to –”

“No,” Miles replies curtly. His face is void of all emotion, which reveals a cool anger. I can’t fathom what he’s so mad about.

Is it because I can’t remember him?

I don’t want to press. The more I talk about it, the more agitated he seems. So I nod and keep my mouth shut.

“I should go,” I say. A new dance is starting. We look silly standing there, staring at each other without touching or saying a word. I’m still working this event. There are plenty of matters that likely need my attention.

Miles doesn’t seem like he’s going to say goodbye, so I take his silence as dismissal and start to turn.

“Take me off your block list,” Miles says suddenly. It’s an order and a warning, leaving no room for argument.

I look back at him, but he’s no longer looking at me. Not waiting for a reply, he walks away from me, straight off the dance floor and into the crowd, towards his father.

I stare after him for a long moment.

Not goodbye forever, then. If he wants me to remove him from his block list, doesn’t that mean he wants to speak with me again?

Despite all the reasons I shouldn’t be pleased with that, the butterflies still take flight in my stomach.

On my way back to the employee tent, I retrieve my phone and unblock Miles’s number. I even set him as a contact, Rep. Miles Hamilton.

Oddly, I don’t see Garnar around, not even as the party continues and eventually winds down. He must have left, probably with Thea, because there’s no sign of her either.

I busy myself with work and try not to let myself think too much about how that makes me feel.

When I finally make my way home, I’m exhausted from being on my feet all day. The party had only a few more crises, but as the event-planner, those crises all fell on me to resolve. Even Paige began to divert to me after a while.

I can’t complain. It felt good to be depended upon so fully, but admittedly, I’m tired as all hell now. I just want to put on my pajamas and crawl onto the couch to sleep, if Garnar won’t give up the bed.

Halfway up the staircase, I stop in my tracks, spotting a bit of torn lace caught on the edge of the carpet. I reach down and pluck the lace between my fingers. Lifting it, I realize. This is the cup of a bra, seemingly ripped straight off the band. The color is familiar too. Is this one of mine?

Did Garnar go on some kind of rampage and destroy all my lingerie?

I bought this specific pair a year ago, when I still had fantasies of making my marriage work. No matter how hard I tried, or how sexy I looked, Garnar always found reasons not to have sex with me.

I stopped buying after a while. Garnar’s consistent rejection had me doubting my own attractiveness, even with the sexy negligee. Night after night, I felt so defeated.

Eventually, I gave up altogether.

Two steps higher, I find the other cup. At the top of the stairs, the band rests, the lace ripped apart near the clasp, though the clasp is still secure.

That’s weird. Why would he connect the clasp if he was just going to rip the bra apart in a rage?

Just then, the bathroom door opens and my sister Thea walks out, toweling her hair. There’s a second towel wrapped around her body.

Thea glances at me, and then at the lace shreds in my hands and laughs.

“Thanks for cleaning up after us, Esther. You know how much of an animal Garnar can be when he’s horny. Or – no. I suppose maybe you don’t know, since you can never get him hard.”

Immediately, I drop the lace back onto the ground.

“The panties are in the bedroom. They’re a bit damp though.” She laughs again. “After a wash, they’ll be good as new. Can’t say the same for the bra though.”

“What are you doing here, Thea? And why were you wearing my lingerie?”

Thea rolls her eyes. “Don’t play dumb, Esther. Do you need me to spell it out for you? S-E-X. I’m fucking your husband. Or…” Another laugh. “I guess he’s the one fucking me.”

I grit my teeth to keep from screaming, or dragging her down the stairs and tossing her naked out onto the street.

“What about the girls? What about me?” I demand.

“The girls are still out, but even if they weren’t, I doubt they’d notice. They’re always tucked away in their rooms.”

How does she know that? Unless she’s been here before? Oh, God. I might be sick. This isn’t the first time they’ve slept together in my house. It’s just the first time I’ve caught them.

How bold! They aren’t even trying to hide it from me!

And to use my own lingerie?

“Your lingerie adds a bit of spice,” Thea continues, sing-song, like she hasn’t a care in the world. “Garnar likes the thrill of it all. Besides, he told me that it would be a shame for such beautiful pieces to go to waste on an unsightly old cow like you.”

“You…!” I want to call Thea every name under the sun, but despite everything, she’s still my little sister. She’s young and naïve falling for Garnar’s lies just like I did.

He’s the one I hate. Thea isn’t too far behind him, but she’s not my main enemy.

The towel around Thea’s waist slips slightly, revealing the curve of her perky breast. She grins like she did that on purpose. She has a perfect body, being young and never having had children. Showing it off is just one more way to insult me.

I look away. That seems to upset Thea more than anything else I’ve said or done.

“How can you be like this?” she snaps. “You understand everything now. Your husband loves me more than he’s ever loved you. Doesn’t that make you angry? Why aren’t you saying anything?”

She saunters closer to me, making me look at her.

“Why not confront me, Esther? Here. Now. Tell me how much you hate me.”