Chapter 4

Jamie and I weren't exactly a secret in the office. Louise's performance was clearly meant for me.

"Come sit over here," Jamie said, guiding Louise to the main table without even glancing in my direction.

I stared down at my plate. My ears were ringing.

Louise's laughter stabbed through my eardrums like ice picks. She kept leaning close to Jamie, whispering, touching his sleeve, playing up every moment for the crowd's entertainment.

"Miss Kendall, you don't look so well," the server murmured beside me when he served us food. "Would you like some water?"

I shook my head and stood up, ready to leave. That was when it happened. A glass of red wine came flying in from the side, splashing straight down the front of my white blouse.

"Oh no! I'm so sorry." Louise shot to her feet, holding the now-empty glass. "I must've turned too fast."

The room went dead quiet. Wine dripped from my shirt, seeping into the white tablecloth like blood.

Louise was practically glowing with satisfaction. And Jamie? He frowned, then said, "Sandra, can you try to be more careful? You were standing right in her way."

I felt like lightning had struck me. Five years of being by his side, and all I got in return was public humiliation and blame. My mouth opened. No sound came out.

A voice came from behind me. "The restroom's to the right of the hallway." I turned to see Oliver standing next to me. He handed me a pack of tissues and a neatly folded suit jacket. "In case you need it," he added.

I took the tissues but didn't reach for the jacket. Under everyone's silent stares, I walked quickly out of the room and headed to the bathroom.

Cold water rushed over the wine stain, but it didn't wash away the embarrassment. I stared at my reflection—face pale, eyes red, but no tears would come.

The woman in the mirror looked pathetic, betrayed in public by her own boyfriend and too drained to fight back.

Twenty minutes later, I returned to the dining room, composed—on the outside. The party was wrapping up.

My chair was gone. Louise had taken my spot, now leaning in close and feeding Jamie bits of food.

No one noticed I'd come back. No one except Oliver—who caught my eye from across the room and raised his glass slightly, his expression unreadable.

*****

Late that night, I curled up on the couch, waiting for Jamie to come home. He said he was giving Louise a ride. That "ride" lasted five hours.

At 1 a.m., the lock finally clicked. Jamie stumbled in, reeking of wine. When he saw me, he blinked in surprise. "You're still up?"

"We need to talk." My voice was so hoarse it didn't sound like mine.

Jamie sighed and tugged at his tie, annoyed. "I'm exhausted. Can we not do this right now?"

"Why did you take credit for my proposal?" I asked, each word shaking. "And why'd you let Louise humiliate me in front of everyone?"

"Here we go again," Jamie groaned, rolling his eyes. "The proposal was a team effort. Who cares whose name is on it? And Louise's just straightforward. Don't take it so seriously."

He tossed his phone onto the coffee table and headed to the kitchen. The screen lit up with a text notification from Louise.

It read: [Jamie, tonight was sooo fun. Next time, I'll show you the new lingerie I bought.] It even included heart and kiss emoji.

My blood ran cold. When he came back, I was holding his phone.

"What is this?" My hands were trembling as I showed him the message.

His face shifted from shock to anger in a flash. "You went through my phone?"

"It lit up by itself!" I shot back. "Jamie, what exactly is going on between you and Louise?"

"You seriously don't trust me?" he snapped. "Louise's like a sister to me. That's just how we joke around. You're really paranoid lately. Maybe you're not working hard enough."

I stared at him, stunned. He had crossed every line—and now I was being blamed?

"Why did Oliver back you up in the meeting today?" Jamie suddenly asked, voice sharp. "When did you two get so close?"

"What?" I blinked, thrown off by the sudden change in topic. "He was just being honest."

"Please," Jamie sneered. "Guys don't defend women for no reason. Word is, he got fired from his last company for being too cozy with a female subordinate. Just saying."

My jaw dropped. Was he seriously smearing Oliver now to cover his lies? And the scariest part was Jamie said it like he believed it.

"I'm done." That was all I could manage. I turned and walked toward the bedroom.

"Don't forget to show up early tomorrow," Jamie called after me. "Mr. Sandoval wants the proposal revised."

I shut the door behind me and sank to the floor, my back against the door. My phone buzzed. It was a new email from Human Resource. [Due to project needs, you've been reassigned to support the Marketing Department under Oliver Armstrong.]

How ironic. I hugged my knees and finally asked myself the question I'd been avoiding for years—was this relationship really worth saving anymore?