Chapter 4

On the third morning, I went to Ryan's company.

His tech company was something the two of us built from nothing after college.

For the first two years, I drank myself into the hospital three times with stomach bleeding, chasing sponsors and closing deals for him.

Every contract and every major client came out of work, and I did one step at a time.

Once the company was steady, Ryan said, "Renee, you're worn out. Move into the back office and handle finance and design. I'll take the pressure out front."

I believed him.

I put my edge away and became the woman standing behind him.

When I pushed the door open, the receptionist looked startled and awkward.

She saod, "Renee, what brings you in? Mr. Carter is in a meeting right now."

"I'm not here for him," I said. "I'm picking up a few things and leaving."

I went straight to the finance room and my old office.

Passing Ryan's office, I saw the blinds hadn't been shut all the way, and there was a gap in them.

Chloe's voice came through it, soft and playful. "Ryan, do you like this tie? You're getting married in two days, and I want you in the burgundy. It was your favorite color when we were together."

Ryan answered gently, "Anything you pick looks good. But I haven't told Renee the tie color changed."

Chloe sighed, sounding wounded. "Is Renee still angry at me? Ryan, if I'm the reason you two are fighting, I'll move to a hotel tonight. Though I get frightened alone in a hotel."

"Don't talk like that," Ryan cut her off, full of concern. "You just got back. I'm not putting you in a hotel. Renee is being childish, and she'll be fine. Nobody is sending you anywhere while I'm here."

Then came the sound of fabric moving.

Through the gap, I watched Chloe go up on her toes and tie Ryan's tie for him.

Ryan looked down at her with his eyes soft enough to spill over, and his hand settled on her waist as it lingered there.

The thing that surprised me was that nothing tore in me.

All that was left was a flat, numb stretch of nothing.

When a man stops loving a woman, his eyes give it away before anything else does.

He used to look at me that way, too. Somewhere along the line, all that was left in his eyes was fatigue, patience running out, and a preference for someone else.

I looked away and walked into the finance room.

I took out the Share Transfer Agreement and the Resignation Letter I had printed ahead of time and set them on the desk.

I signed over thirty percent of the company in my name to Ryan for nothing.

What I had built for that company over the years was worth far more than that.

I didn't want any of it.

I didn't want one thread of my life tangled up in his money anymore.

Then I took out the company seal, my access card, the safe key, and the spare key to his office.

I lined all of it up neatly on the desk.

When everything was in order, I turned and went downstairs.

A fine rain had started by the time I reached the street.

My phone buzzed with a message from Ryan.

Ryan: [Renee, the front desk says you came by. Why didn't you come to my office? What did you take?]

I stood in the rain and typed one line back.

I sent: [I took what's mine and left you what's yours.]

Ryan answered right away.

Ryan: [What are you losing your mind about now? We're driving out to see your grandmother tonight, so don't forget. Everybody is waiting on us.]

Her house.

Right. By tradition, the night before the wedding, the groom drives the bride out to her family and sits down to dinner with them.

I read that message and laughed at myself.

Ryan remembered the tradition, and he still hadn't noticed that the woman walking beside him wasn't his bride.

I didn't answer him. I hailed a cab and went straight out to the old town on the edge of the county.

That was where my grandmother lived, and it was the last warm place I had in the world.