Chapter 2

Ciara suddenly grabbed my wrist. Her thumb pressed hard over the mark on my collarbone, and something dark and unreadable churned in her eyes. "That's a deep one."

She paused, her voice dropping. "Sorry. I'll be more careful next time."

I stared at her.

Then it hit me. She thought that mark was one she had left.

How absurd. How long had it been since we last touched each other? A month? Two? How could she still claim credit for a mark someone else had left?

I opened my mouth. Then closed it again.

If that was what she wanted to believe, let her.

I would wait. Wait for her to discover on her own that I had taken someone else to bed too.

The next day, my company held a product launch. Half the industry showed up.

I walked the red carpet with Ciara on my arm, cameras flashing like crazy.

"Ms. Hayes, Mr. Shaw, over here." the reporters shouted.

I curved my lips into a smile for the cameras with practiced ease.

But my eyes cut through the crowd and locked onto one figure.

Vivian.

She wore a black couture gown, her delicate collarbones bared to the room.

She was chatting with a few brand reps, perfectly at ease.

As if she sensed something, she turned her head slightly and met my gaze head-on.

Across the shifting sea of heads and the endless clicking of shutters, her look landed like a needle, light but sharp.

Then the corner of her mouth curved, and she looked away, unhurried.

My heart skipped a beat.

Ciara caught the change in me right away. "What's wrong? Not feeling well?"

I pulled my eyes back and shook my head. "I'm fine."

At the after-party, I sat between Ciara and Vivian.

Ciara stayed a while, then suddenly stood. "I need to step out for a bit. You take care of the guests." And she was gone.

"Sure," I said.

She was gone for half an hour.

I was about to call her when a familiar voice drifted in from the doorway.

"Ms. Hayes, I've never been to something this big before. Am I going to embarrass you?" Neil asked.

"Don't worry. With me here, no one would dare look down on you," Ciara said.

My chest tightened. I slowly turned around.

And there she was. Ciara, walking in with a man barely twenty.

He wore a white shirt and was gazing at her with open adoration, one hand resting easily on her waist.

And Ciara didn't seem to think anything was off about it.

The blood in my veins felt like it had frozen solid. 'She actually had the nerve to bring him here, right in front of me?'

Ciara led him over and introduced him in an easy tone. "Sean, this is my new assistant, Neil Lane.

"It's his first time at something like this. Show him the ropes."

Neil flashed me a quick smile. "Hey, Sean. You look really sharp tonight."

I looked at that clean, innocent face, and a wave of absurdity crashed over me.

Assistant.

So the thrill of sneaking around wasn't enough for her anymore. She'd just handed Neil a title that let him stand next to her out in the open.

My fingernails dug into my palm. The sting was the only thing keeping the smile on my face. "Nice to meet you."

What came next played out like slow-motion torture.

Ciara held Neil's hand and pulled him around to meet this person and that person. "This is Mr. Lewis. This is Mr. Walker. If there's anything you don't understand, just ask me."

Every step she took, Neil followed.

Like a newborn chick, glued to her side.

And she let him lean on her like that. Just the way I used to.

I sat there, using every ounce of energy just to keep a proper smile on my face.

Something inside my chest was being carved out, cut by cut, until I could barely breathe.

Then a woman investor, several drinks in, wandered over to them. "Well, well. This is Ms. Hayes's new assistant? Handsome kid. Come on, have a drink with me."

Neil had never been in a spot like this. He shrank back behind Ciara.

The atmosphere froze.

Every eye turned to Ciara.

Ciara glanced at the glass, then at Neil cowering behind her, watching her.

Then she turned her head, and her eyes landed on me.

"Sean," she said.

"Why don't you drink it for him?" Ciara said.

Like it was the most natural thing in the world.

I looked at her.

Through the perfume and silk of the whole room, through every pair of watching eyes.

I slowly stood up.

Every eye in the room settled on our corner.

Some were there for the show. Some were waiting for me to fall apart.

Did Ciara even realize that what she was doing had, in a single moment, told every sharp mind in this room the truth?

She was cheating. And she'd brought her lover right out into the open to slap her husband across the face.

I picked up the glass and asked her, "You sure you want me to drink this?"

Ciara answered with a furrowed brow, her voice edged with something close to reproach. "It's just one drink. You won't do it?"

Just one drink. I could hold my liquor, no question.

But I didn't want to.

I didn't move.

The air in the room froze.

Ciara's face went cold as she stared at me, displeasure churning in her eyes.

That look cut into my chest like a blade. It nearly broke me.

But in the next second, I felt someone take my hand under the table.

I froze.

I turned to look at Vivian. She didn't let go, and her expression was flawless.

The pain in my chest receded, like a tide going out.

A smile pulled at my lips. I lifted the glass and, with everyone watching, drained it in one swallow. "There. Happy now?"

Ciara didn't catch a thing. She thought I'd caved.

Her tone softened. "Neil's young. He looks up to you like an older brother, so look out for him a little, okay?"

I nodded. "I get it. You feel bad for the kid. Life's not easy for him."

Ciara stiffened.