could stand it and stepped under the scalding spray, scrubbing at her skin as if she could wash awa

ad pushed. Still, she could feel the road dust on her palms, the gravel beneath her shoes, the sound o

He sat just outside the glass door, a small, silent sent

herself. She picked up Nacho, holding his warm, vibrating body against her chest. He was s

her voice hoarse from exhaustion and anger. "He d

Barrett did not return. The apartment reverte

es, anything to keep her mind occupied. She met with her lawyer, a sharp, no-nonsense

h from a wound that had been closed over i

r operating room couldn'

d, when Chloe Reynolds slid into the seat opposite her. Chloe was a competent anesthe

or concern, though the interest in her eyes was anything but kind.

ing off the night Barrett had left her on the side of the road. She'd placed the

she said, hoping the explanation wo

rward. "We all saw the news. Mr. Harding back in town, painting the town

at the nearby tables paused their own conversations to listen.

Minimize. Smile. Protect the Harding name even when

box. The yacht photo. Barrett's soft voice on the phone with ano

l response would just fuel their speculat

one thing the

rectly into Chloe's prying eyes,

ar and carrying just enough to be o

a beat, enjoying the look of

, Chloe, it would have been rude of me to interrupt. He was

ake of breath moved th

ked. "I di

still smiling. "That's why you

Chloe's che

ty. "You wanted the abandoned wife version. Tears, embarrassment, maybe a desperate l

opened, but no

cademic detachment, "It's a ceremonial

rally dropped. She had been expecting tears, or anger, or a flustered

he Hardings. They were the ones who needed the marriage. I was simply convenient enough t

ence sh

her doctor lowered his eyes to his phone. The little circle of spectators

a bite of her salad, as if she h

f balance. It reframed the narrative. She wasn't a pathetic, abandoned wife. She wa

. Chloe and the others suddenly loo

t needing to check on a pati

as small, but

hloe mattered, but because refusing to be humiliated did. The story

, leaving behind the familiar, hollow ache. Saying the words

mony, no

lso the plainest truth she had

d with a messag

e ready. She can serve him

cabs on the street below. She thought of Barrett's smiling face in the societ

teria, looking Chloe Reynolds in the ey

reply with a

d th