room, Averie's calm was absolute. It was the eer

"Ellie, I need you to call that lawyer friend of y

wasn't a moment of anger. This was a final verdict. "Of course,"

nt," Averie said, her voice st

leanor insisted. "What i

aying the devoted protector to his true love." The words w

g her friend's need for closure. "Okay. I'll

penthouse door. The place she had called home

emary steak she had cooked hours ago met her. The scent was

a meticulous landscape of Jarett's bespoke suits and designer watches. The other side was a rio

ffection. Now she saw it for what it wa

dragged out a small, worn suitcase. It was the only piece

to pack. But she only

A few faded, comfortable t-shirts and a pair of worn-in jeans. A single framed

touch the designer clothes. She didn't t

flawless, obscenely large pink diamond. He had placed it on her finger with

from her finger. It felt surprisingly light. She dr

othing he had given her. It was the only p

-full. It was a stark, pathetic measure of how little

er eyes landed on the anniversary card she had left on the coff

then, with no expression on her face, she ripped it cl

out of the apartment, not once looking back. She was leaving the sa