Chapter 6

"It' s just a game, Brooke," Easton said, his voice low, but his eyes were fixed on Kelly. He let go of my wrist and stood up.

He offered his hand to Kelly. She took it, her face glowing with triumph.

The crowd erupted in cheers and catcalls as they disappeared into the small, dimly lit powder room. The door clicked shut behind them.

I felt a cold shock, as if a bucket of ice water had been dumped over my head. My love for him, my hope, my naive belief that he might one day choose me-it was a foolish, one-sided fantasy.

"Poor Brooke," one of Kelly' s friends whispered loudly. "Still doesn' t get it, does she?"

I stood up, my legs trembling, and walked out of the room. I didn' t look back.

A few minutes later, the door to the powder room opened. Easton and Kelly emerged, their faces flushed. Kelly' s lipstick was smeared, and on the pale skin of her neck, just below her ear, was a dark, angry-looking mark. A hickey.

The sight sent a sharp, physical pain through my chest.

I walked straight to the front door. "I' m not feeling well," I managed to say to a confused-looking friend of Easton' s. "I' m going home."

Easton saw me leaving, but he didn' t move. He just watched me go, his expression unreadable, as Kelly wrapped her arms around his neck.

I called an Uber, the city lights blurring past the window. The sky was dark and heavy, matching the storm inside me.

My phone buzzed. A video message from a number I didn' t recognize. From Kelly.

I pressed play.

It was them, in the powder room. The camera was shaky, but the image was clear. They were kissing, a desperate, hungry kiss. The video captured their conversation.

"Why did you marry her?" Kelly' s voice was a breathless whisper against his lips.

Easton pulled back, his face etched with a pain that looked almost genuine. "You left me, Kelly. What was I supposed to do?"

"Will you divorce her?" she pressed, her hands tangled in his hair. "Will you come back to me?"

He closed his eyes, a long, ragged sigh escaping his lips. "You know I can' t say no to you. You' ve always owned me."

The video ended.

I stared at the black screen, my reflection a pale, hollow-eyed ghost. My heart, my marriage, my entire world had just been pulverized into dust. A sour taste rose in my throat.

Kelly sent another message. `He' s mine. He was always mine.`

I didn' t reply. I just watched the city lights streak by, feeling nothing.

When I got back to our cold, empty penthouse, I walked straight to the bathroom. I twisted the wedding ring off my finger, the simple gold band that had once felt so heavy with promise. Without a second thought, I dropped it into the toilet and flushed. I watched it swirl and disappear into the drain.

I pulled my suitcases from the closet and started packing. My tears were gone, replaced by a cold, hard resolve. I was done. I was free.

Just as I zipped the last bag, the front door opened.

Easton and Kelly stood in the doorway. Easton' s face was dark, thunderous. Kelly was hiding behind him, weeping dramatically.

"What' s wrong?" I asked, my voice steady.

Easton' s eyes were like chips of ice. He pointed a finger at me, his voice shaking with rage.

"You' re a thief, Brooke."

He took a step toward me. "Kelly' s diamond necklace is missing. The one her grandmother gave her. It' s worth millions. Give it back, or I' m calling the police."

I stared at him, my blood running cold. "I didn' t take anything."

He didn' t believe me. I could see it in his eyes. The complete and utter lack of trust.

My heart ached with a pain so deep it was almost physical. "Easton, I have never wanted a single thing from your family. You know that."

A flicker of doubt crossed his face as a tear escaped my eye. He wavered for a second.

But then Kelly, the master manipulator, started sobbing again. "Brooke, please, just give it back. It means so much to me. My grandmother gave it to me on her deathbed."

I yanked my arm away from her touch. "I told you, I didn' t take it!"

Kelly stumbled backward, collapsing onto the floor in a heap of fake despair. She looked up at Easton, her eyes wide and pleading. "Easton, you know her background. Her mother..." She let the sentence hang in the air, the implication clear and venomous. People from my world were greedy. Desperate. Thieves.

My face went cold. "What did you say about my mother?"

Kelly saw her advantage. "I' m just saying, maybe you should have security check her place, too. People like that..."

That was it. That was the line.

I slapped her. Harder this time. The sound was like a gunshot in the silent room.