Chapter 2
TWO
SHOES CLUTCHED IN one hand, keys dangling from the other, I trudge toward our apartment door. The hallway smells of chemical cleaner and cloying air freshener. A familiar scent that now turns my stomach. The weight of the night presses down.
Don’t think, just move.
Get inside.
Pack.
The commands fire rapidly, a desperate attempt to block out the whirlwind threatening to overwhelm me.
Before I slide the key into the lock, the door swings open. James blocks the threshold, hair a mess and shirt half-untucked. The musky scent of alcohol and something sickly sweet clings to him.
“Where do you think you’re going?” He snatches the keys, his fingers brushing mine.
Revulsion shoots up my arm. I recoil.
He pockets the keys and shoves me back, sending my spine into the wall hard enough to rattle my teeth. “Weren’t you just yelling that it’s over?”
“Get out of my way, James.” My throat constricts.
I move to step past him. He shifts, a solid wall. “I don’t think so—” His eyes narrow, lingering on the wig. “Wow. This look really suits you. Hot, sexy Mimi.” His voice drips with a false charm that makes my skin crawl.
He steps closer, eyes raking over my body with a dark, predatory hunger.
“It would be a shame to let it go to waste. I know you didn’t mean what you said, so let’s just kiss and make—”
“Don’t touch me!” I shove his chest, but he barely budges. “I’m tired of your games. I saw the truth with my own eyes.”
“Like I said, just a bit of fun. Meant nothing.” He advances, an amused glint in his eyes. “I’m here with you, aren’t I? I always come home to you.”
“You always come home. But not to me.”
He sighs, exasperated. “Why is everything always so complicated with you?”
“Complicated?” My voice cracks. “Did you seriously expect me to stand by and watch as you fuck half the female population of Madison?”
“I expected you to be more understanding.” He invades my space, backing me against the wall again.
The hallway shrinks. The air reeks of stale alcohol.
“I told you this whole fiancé thing is new to me, but I’m working on it. What more do you want?”
“What more… do I want?” Tears prick my eyes. “I want my fiancé back. The man who loved me. I want the passion, the warmth, the way you used to look at me—” My voice dissolves into a choked sob.
James runs a hand through his hair, eyes squeezed shut. “Wow. You’re such a buzzkill.”
The word strikes me cold.
A buzzkill?
Knowing I’m getting nowhere, I wipe my face and try to sidestep him. He grabs my elbow, fingers digging in. I wince as pain cuts through my numbness.
“Of all the women I could’ve been with, I chose you.” He jabs a finger at my chest, forcing me back. “I’m marrying you, for God’s sake! How is that not enough?”
My back hits the wall. “Get your finger out of my face!” I slap his hand away. “It’s over. No wedding. No us. I’m done.”
He grabs my left hand, crushing it. “Done? Do you know how many women would kill for this ring?” His eyes widen on my bare finger. “Where is it? You dare guilt-trip me when you’re not even wearing it?”
“I was wearing it.” I yank my hand free. “But I threw it away.”
Satisfaction dies instantly as his face contorts.
“You threw it away?” His hand snaps around my throat.
I gasp. Air vanishes.
His face is inches from mine, breath rancid. “That ring cost more than you’ll make in your pathetic lifetime. And you threw it away like trash?!”
“Same way you threw our love away,” I rasp.
He pulls me from the wall only to slam me back against it. My head hits the drywall.
I bite my lip to stifle a cry.
“You’ve gone too far,” he hisses in my ear.
“Let go!” I claw at his wrist, nails digging deep.
His grip loosens. I suck in a desperate, ragged gasp.
“You fucked with the wrong guy, sweetheart.” He barely notices my struggles. “I don’t give a shit if it takes you all night. You are going back and fetching my ring.”
I turn my head, but he grabs my chin, fingers digging into my cheeks to force me to look at him.
His brown eyes burn with contempt. “Pray you find it. Because if you don’t, I will come for everything. And you can kiss that little café of yours goodbye.”
“I knew it!” I choke out. “I knew it was only a matter of time before you used that loan against me.”
“You’re the heartless bitch who threw away the engagement ring I gave you.” He releases my face, lip curling. “Who the fuck do you think you are?!”
“Not sure anymore.” My chin wobbles. “But I’m no longer yours. You don’t deserve me. You deserve to drown in filthy hookups with your pathetic, interchangeable women—”
His hand whips out.
Pain explodes. A blinding flash of white.
He hit me.
The thought reverberates through numbed senses.
“Don’t ever forget your place,” he warns, his chest heaving. “And don’t think for a second you’ll dictate how this goes down.”
He hit me.
The words repeat. A broken record.
Shame swells in my throat.
Can’t breathe.
Can’t speak.
Can’t think.
“Bring the fucking ring back,” he growls.
The door slams, and my legs buckle.
I crumple to the floor, head bowed, the thin fabric of my dress bunched in my hands.
The sting on my cheek is nothing compared to the ruin inside my chest. I wrap my arms around myself, trying to hold the pieces together.
Broken.
Crushed.
Lost.
The carpet scratches my knees.
This hallway, this apartment, this life…
It’s all been a lie.
A carefully constructed illusion. A trap. And I, the na?ve fool, fell for it completely.
I close my eyes. Tears come in a hot torrent. A sob escapes, a ragged sound that echoes in the empty hallway.
There is no escape.
I have to face it.
But how?
How do you start over when the foundation is demolished?
Dizziness rolls over me. I lean forward, palms flat against the ground, head spinning.
I take a deep breath.
I have to find that ring.
Not for him.
For my café.
For my future.
For me.
With a shaky breath, I push off the floor. My legs tremble as I straighten my dress, wipe the tears, and stand.
I may be broken. But I’m not done.
I will find that ring.