Chapter4

"Claire, were you really sick yesterday?"

My spoon stopped halfway to my mouth. I glanced at Ethan. His expression told me nothing.

"Yes, Mom. I wasn't feeling well."

"Then you should get a proper checkup. You've been married two years. All my friends are becoming grandparents, and we haven't heard any news from you."

Although she addressed me, she kept looking at Ethan.

He set down his fork and took my hand. When he turned to his mother, he looked concerned.

"Don't worry. I'll take Claire to see a doctor."

I watched him say it. If I hadn't known him, I might have believed he'd been worrying about me all along.

After the visit, Ethan drove me home. Before I got out, he handed me a small gift box.

"Thank you for helping me today."

Inside was a bracelet. It was pretty and tasteful. Whether he'd picked it out himself or had his assistant do it, I couldn't tell.

Over the past two years, he'd given me plenty of gifts. Most stayed in their boxes in my cabinet. He had kept that part of his promise: if something could be bought, he could give it to me.

"I need to pick up an important document at your office tomorrow," I said.

"All right. I'll have someone help you."

I nodded and got out of the car.

Upstairs, I put the new bracelet away. I still wore the crystal bracelet my mother had left me; I had no desire to replace it.

That evening, I lay on the bed and looked at the ceiling. Ethan came and went, but we'd never made a shared life in these rooms. Even on our wedding night, once the guests had gone, he'd left for Vanessa's home.

I'd stayed here, still in the clothes I'd married him in, knowing where he'd chosen to be.

The next day, I went to the Caldwell Group's offices to collect the document. Vanessa stopped me before I got far.

"Claire. It's been a while. Thinking of going back to work?"

She lifted her chin as she approached. I knew the tone before she finished the question.

Everyone knew I'd stepped away from the Bennett Group after Ethan returned. I'd let my life shrink around the prospect of marrying him, then around the marriage itself. When my parents died, even thinking about Dad's company became painful, and I withdrew further.

My uncles and other relatives who had worked with him kept the business running. They'd done more than hold it together; the company had grown while I stayed away.

"Things change quickly in this industry," Vanessa said. "I'm not sure you'd be able to keep up."

I looked at her. Up close, there was a resemblance between us that I'd noticed before and never known what to make of.

We hadn't spent much time together. At first, she'd been polite, mindful of my family's standing. As she grew more certain of Ethan's affection, she started provoking me, sending pictures she knew would hurt and making comments she could pass off as harmless.

Now she didn't bother disguising it.

I had come for a document. I didn't want to stand in his office defending the career I'd once had to the woman he kept choosing over me.

She opened her mouth again. I looked away and walked past her.

I waited in the break room. Through the glass, I could see people moving between desks, talking about work, carrying folders to meetings.

A few years earlier, that had been my day too. I'd complained about the hours, but I missed having something that absorbed me so completely. I missed going home tired because I'd accomplished something.

After a few minutes, Vanessa came in with the documents.

The top buttons of her white blouse were open. I caught a glimpse of marks on her neck and looked away, too late to avoid understanding what she was showing me.

"Ethan couldn't get away. He asked me to bring these."

The nickname sounded easy in her mouth. I reached for the papers.

She moved into my path.

"Don't you want to know what Ethan really thinks of you?"

I curled my fingers against my palm.

"No. I'm not interested."

I stepped back. She came closer.

"He says you're like a little lapdog. Always following him around. He can't get rid of you."

I tried to move around her, but she kept talking.

"Seeing you every day is the part he hates most."

My mouth opened. Nothing came out.

She was the one saying it. I hadn't heard those words from him. Yet I couldn't stop thinking of all the times he'd looked impatient when I approached, all the conversations he'd ended before I'd finished speaking.

Was that how he talked about me when I wasn't there?

I wanted to get out before she saw me cry.

As I stepped away, her foot caught mine. I stumbled. Vanessa gave me a small, strange smile, then grabbed my wrist hard.

I felt a sharp pull at the bracelet. She screamed and let go, dropping to the floor. Crystal struck tile with a sound I recognized before I could look down.

I caught the edge of the table and steadied myself. People were already coming toward the break room.

Vanessa lay on the floor, clutching herself as if she were in pain. Beside her were the broken pieces of my mother's bracelet.

For a moment, I could only stare at them.

Then I bent down.

"Claire! What are you doing?"

Ethan shoved me away before I reached the pieces. I lost my balance and struck the back of my head against the table.

Pain spread through my scalp. I reached behind me and felt something warm and wet.

When I looked up, he was holding Vanessa.

"Claire, I thought you were falling," she sobbed. "I only tried to help. Why did you push me?"

She pressed against him, her eyes fixed on me.

"If I've done something wrong, tell me. I can change. Please don't be angry with me."

I sank to my knees and picked up a piece of crystal.

There were more under the table. I could see them, but my hand was shaking so badly that I couldn't grasp them.

"It's just a broken bracelet, Claire," Ethan said. "Apologize."

A sharp edge cut my fingertip. I looked at the blood, then up at him.

"It wasn't my fault."

My voice was louder than I'd intended. People were watching from the doorway, but I couldn't soften it for them or for him.

"I didn't push her."

Ethan's brow tightened.

"I never thought you could be this cruel."

I waited for him to notice my head, my hand, the pieces on the floor. His attention stayed on Vanessa.

Over his shoulder, she looked at me. The tears were still on her cheeks, but there was satisfaction in her expression.

He lifted her and carried her out.