Chapter 2
The cold shoulder from last night was officially over after I splurged on a fine restaurant and made the reservation myself.
Today was our fourth anniversary.
I figured maybe a proper date, something with a little ceremony, could help bring back some of that old magic we had at the start.
Landon really did me a solid.
He wore the gray cashmere sweater I got him, his hair neatly done, and he looked just like that gentle, refined guy he used to be.
"Do you like the vibe here?" I handed him the menu, trying to warm things up.
"Yeah, it's nice," he said, taking the menu, but his eyes drifted out the window.
He seemed distracted. Ever since we sat down, his phone screen hadn't gone dark once.
He just left it propped up on the table, and messages kept popping up one after another.
The chat with Helena Rhodes at the very top was especially hard to ignore.
I saw Helena send a cute cat meme.
Then, I watched Landon actually smile for real, one of those genuine smiles I hadn't seen from him in forever.
He picked up his phone, his fingers flying across the screen, completely engrossed. That kind of focus and patience—his attention felt like a needle pricking my heart.
"Are you talking about work?" I asked, trying to sound offhand.
Without even glancing up, he replied, "Yeah, newbies always have a ton of questions."
It was the same old story. Newbies again, and of course, he meant Helena.
It felt like, in his whole world, she was the only junior who ever needed him.
The food arrived. I stared down at my steak, cutting it up, but it tasted like cardboard.
Across from me, Landon would take a bite, check his phone, grin at the screen, fire off a reply, then do it all over again.
He messaged Helena more times than he spoke to me the entire night.
It felt like there was an invisible wall standing between us.
And his phone was the only window in that wall.
But the world beyond that window wasn't mine.
"Landon," I couldn't take it anymore, and put down my fork and knife. "Today's our fourth anniversary." It was just a gentle reminder.
I just wanted him to look up from his phone and actually notice me.
He finally looked up, and there was a hint of guilt in his eyes.
"Sorry, something urgent came up at work," he said.
Just then, a waiter came over with a gorgeous tiramisu.
"Mr. Price, this is a surprise from Ms. Rhodes," the waiter said.
My head was buzzing.
A surprise? Seriously? At our anniversary dinner table, a surprise from some other woman?
I saw a flash of shock on Landon's face, which quickly shifted into a helpless expression mixed with a hint of smug satisfaction.
He picked up his phone, and I saw that Helena had messaged him at almost the same time. [Happy anniversary, Landon. Even if you're swamped with work, don't forget to have something sweet.]
Happy anniversary? How the hell did she know what day it was?
Landon frowned as he typed, and I leaned in, trying to see what he was up to.
It wasn't a text, but a coffee delivery link. Then another message popped up. [Landon, your department totally forgot about you this afternoon, so here's a treat to make up for it.]
He quickly turned off his screen, almost like he was guarding it from me.
He looked up, wearing that look he always gets when he's about to explain things away.
"She's just a kid, probably overheard someone talking and decided to mess around. Don't let it get to you," he said.
His tone was so calm, like he was talking about something that didn't matter at all.
I pulled out my phone and saw Helena's message in their company group chat. I'd joined for work anyway.
[Hey girls, does anyone know if this cake is any good? Thinking of buying it for everyone,] she wrote, with a picture attached.
It was the same delivery link I'd just seen on Landon's phone.
She was totally faking it.
She didn't buy a cake for everyone, just a single one.
And that one was for Landon, and only Landon.