No wonder he was always grumpy. I would be, too, if I spent my free time reading mind-numbing books.
Next to the shelves was a coffee table and two leather seats. He also had a record player set up. Curious what he listened to, I browsed his collection, happy to note that his taste in music was much better than his taste in books. Settling on Aretha Franklin, I put a record on.
Deciding to kill some time by making a list of things I had to do when I was back in San Francisco, I approached his clean desk. Stacks of organized papers and a laptop sat on top, no blank paper or pens in sight.
I hesitated a moment before opening his desk drawers, hoping to find what I was looking for in there. The first one held pens, all neatly lined up. Selecting a black ballpoint pen, I continued looking for paper. Instead, I found a gun in the bottom drawer and a few knives in the lonely drawer on the other side.
All the papers on the desk looked like contracts. I scanned over them, hoping to find a blank page. But instead, my eyes landed on what looked like a deal between Liam and a guy named Aleksándr.
I wasn’t one to snoop, but when I saw the word “marriage” and a date only three weeks away, my curiosity won out.
And I wished I hadn’t seen what I did. Because the contract outlined the marriage between Liam and a girl named Vanna.
It was signed and dated two days ago. Which meant he’d invited me to Chicago knowing full well he was about to get married.
Not comprehending what I was seeing, I sank into his chair. This couldn’t be true. But a glance up confirmed the contract was still sitting where it was two minutes before, saying exactly the same thing.
Liam is engaged to someone else.
I didn’t know how long I sat there, staring at the paper that had pulled the rug from under me. After a while, everything went blurry, but I never took my eyes off it. No matter how much I wished for it not to be true, the paper didn’t suddenly combust and disappear.
How could I have let someone dupe me like this?Thinking back, I tried hard to find a sign that Liam hadn’t been sincere.
“What are you doing sitting in the dark?” Liam’s voice slashed through the silent room, making me jump in my seat, blinking my surroundings back into focus. It had gotten dark, the lights of the city gleaming through the big window at my back.
Coming to stand next to me, he leaned down to place a kiss on my head.
Stiffening, I moved back. “Don’t touch me.”
Reeling back, a frown line marring his stupidly beautiful jerk face, he studied me. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
Standing up, I grabbed the contract off the desk. “You tell me.” The paper shook in my hands as I held it up. “What the hell is this?”
Liam’s eyes went comically wide when he saw what I was holding. “It’s not what it looks like.”
“Okay. So this isn’t a contract stating that you’re marrying a girl named Vanna? One that has your signature on it?”
Oh God, I’m the other woman.The thought hit me like a truck, making me sick. I bent over the side of the desk, aiming for the wastebasket I’d seen there earlier.
Heaving into it, I was glad it wasn’t one with holes but rather solid metal. Warm hands touched my back, and then my hair was pulled out of the way.
Once I was done, a tissue appeared in front of me. I wiped my mouth, then stood up, shrugging off his touch.
I’d dropped the contract to the ground in my haste to not get sick all over his expensive-looking carpet, but for all I cared it could stay there. Crossing my arms in front of my body, I shivered.
“I don’t even know my fiancée.” His voice came out strangled, as if he knew this was the end for us. His chest rose and fell with his deep inhales, his face a mask of granite.
I was going to be sick again. He didn’t even try to deny it. He was engaged. Hearing the words “my fiancée” come out of his mouth, referring to someone who wasn’t me, sent a sharp pain through me, nearly bringing me to my knees.
Swallowing down the bile in my throat, I took a step back. “You must know her well enough to want to marry her.”
“It’s business. I didn’t have a choice.”
Taking another step back, I stood up straight, dropping my arms to my sides. “There’s always a choice. You had a choice whether or not to invite me here. You had a choice to not takethings further with me. And you certainly had a choice when you didn’t tell me you were engaged.”
Then I turned on my heels and ran for all I was worth. Ignoring his calls for me to stop, I went down the stairs, not wanting to wait for the elevator. I raced down the steps, taking them two, sometimes three at a time.
This was the worst thing to ever happen to me. I’d fallen for a liar. A cheater. And I still wanted him.
