The Heartbreak

ANNA

I wasn’t sure where I was going until I’d locked myself in the guest room and sat down against the door.

Vaguely, I heard voices rise in the living area, but the ringing in my ears made it all but impossible to focus on them.

For a brief moment, I’d let him convince me that he wasn’t exactly who I thought he was.

I wanted to kick myself for ever being so stupid to believe that somehow, I could ever be enough.

Chelsea was right. I was young and stupid and entirely too damaged for real love.

A soft knock on the door sent me nearly jumping out of my skin.

“Annalise, please open the door,” Gavin said.

I swallowed and tried to keep my tone even. “I’ll be out in a minute,” I called out, but my voice cracked on the last word.

“Can you at least tell me what’s wrong?” he asked.

How could I when I really couldn’t explain it myself?

Silence stretched between us before I heard him take a deep breath.

“Please, just open the door.” There was an unfamiliar desperation in his voice that almost pulled me to my feet.

Almost.

Instead, I shook my head to snap myself back to reality.

“I need some time to think,” I told him quietly.

He sighed, and I pictured him scrunching up his nose the way he always did when he was frustrated.

“Okay,” he finally agreed. “If you want space, I’ll give it to you, but we need to talk about this.”

I didn’t respond.

After several minutes, his heavy footsteps carried him slowly down the hall.

I pulled my knees to my chest and buried my face in them.

I hated this.

I hated that I was exactly who Chelsea said I was—the delusional girl who believed fairytales could be real. The truth was, I knew better.

I’d seen how quickly a seemingly devoted spouse could turn his back on the people he supposedly loved. All it took—in my father’s case—was a pretty woman. Chelsea Marks was way beyond that.

Perhaps Gavin’s concern the night before had given me hope of something more. If so, it started to wilt the moment I heard her voice in the home I thought could be ours.

There was no way I could go through with his contract now.

The problem with surviving a relationship with him was that I already knew I was falling for him. Hard.

He didn’t love me, and now I knew exactly what it felt like to open up my heart to him.

I wasn’t sure how much time had passed before another knock sounded at the door.

This one was different, though—softer, more hesitant.

“Anna?” Margaret’s concerned tone carried through the door. “Gavin had to run into the office.”

When I didn’t respond, she continued, “I made sandwiches if you would like some.”

As if on cue, my stomach rumbled almost painfully.

I sighed before dragging myself to my feet and opening the door.

Margaret’s motherly gaze scanned over me in obvious concern.

“Oh, honey,” she said sadly. “What happened?”

In that moment, I truly fell apart.

She didn’t hesitate to pull me close against her chest.

It was a feeling I’d longed for since my own mom had passed, and I cried harder at the memory of her doing this exact thing when I was younger.

Margaret pulled away and used her thumbs to wipe away my tears.

“Come on,” she said gently. “Let’s get you some food.”

We sat on the stools around the kitchen island, and she set a plate of the most delicious-smelling grilled cheese I’d ever laid eyes on in front of me.

She picked up one to match, and we ate alongside one another.

“Did Gavin tell you about our visitor?” I asked after a while.

She offered a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “He said that Ms. Marks stopped by and that you were upset.”

I nodded. “She pretty much told me she plans to win him back.”

“Hmm,” she pressed her lips together, as if to keep from saying more.

“I need to get out of here,” I said after a moment.

She gave me a curious look. “I’m not sure it will be that easy.”

“Probably not,” I agreed. “He doesn’t like to lose.”

“Well—” she started to argue.

“At the very least, I need to get some clothes and toiletries,” I said, and then stared hard into her gaze. “Can you cover for me for a bit?”

“If you’re asking me to lie, I can’t do that.”

~I figured as much.~

“Will you at least wait to tell him until he asks?”

She looked unsure but nodded. “Okay, Anna. You must realize it won’t take him long to figure it out.”

“I know. But it’ll give me some time to myself.”

I left her there and went back up to Gavin’s room.

Margaret had bought me a pair of flip-flops with the assumption that I would go gather some of my things the day before.

Since I went to bed so early, I hadn’t had the chance.

Now, I popped the tags off of them and looked around.

Even the penthouse had to be up to code.

Sure enough, there was a fire escape that led to one of the windows.

Hopefully, we were high enough up that my betrothed didn’t feel the need to place security cameras outside.

To be safe, I grabbed a hoodie out of his closet.

It hung almost to my knees, but that made it easier to hide my identity.

I stuffed cash and the keys to my apartment in my pocket.

Lastly, I put my phone down on his nightstand.

It would be harder to make my way around, but I knew he would be able to track me immediately if I kept it.

With one last look around the bedroom, I opened the window and climbed out on the ledge. At the first step, I almost turned back.

I wasn’t one to enjoy heights, and the steep staircase was certainly a test of my willpower.

Was I overreacting? Probably. Had Gavin hacked my phone, proposed an archaic marriage agreement, held me hostage at his penthouse, and led me to believe his ex was out of his life? Mostly.

Maybe an overreaction was justified. Or maybe my concussion was causing my irrationality.

Either way, I needed space, and I knew Gavin wouldn’t let me have anything but an illusion of it after the attack.

Fifteen long flights later, I reached the sidewalk behind the building on shaky legs.

To my delight, no bodyguards were waiting to haul me back to the elevator.

I pulled my hood low over my face and was sure to keep my pace even so as not to draw anyone’s attention.

Calling for a ride was out of the question, so I beelined for the subway station a couple blocks away.

With every step, my resolve over leaving Gavin’s life for good strengthened.

On the train, I came up with thousands of reasons he was an absolute dick.

Then I got off at my stop, and reality finally struck me.

I was going back to the apartment he gave me, furnished with an inflated salary, and kept safe with the security system he had installed.

The last part was just a reminder that he would find out where I went sooner or later.

I was sure he had access to my comings and goings, but I hoped I could be in and out before he looked into it.

A sigh of relief escaped my lips when I opened the door and everything was just as I left it.

This place was the only one that had felt like home since my mom died.

I’d put a lot of thought into every detail, and I loved it.

I quickly filled an overnight bag with a few changes of clothes, hair products, makeup, and my laptop.

Finally, I dug through the kitchen drawer for the old cell phone I kept tucked away there from before Powell Incorporated gave me a company-issued one.

To my relief, it powered up immediately.

The first notification happened to be an Instagram post from an account I followed, uploaded just a few minutes prior.

~Chelsea Marks.~

I wanted to scream. Why was this woman suddenly invading my life?

~Why are you invading hers?~ I pushed the nagging thought away before clicking the banner.

Chelsea posted a photo of her flawless body on display in a hot-pink bikini by an infinity pool. The caption read, “Heartbroken and hot. I hope people remember that Karma can be a real bitch.”

~Wonder who that’s about?~ I nearly rolled my eyes at the screen.

Part of me wanted to respond, but I knew nothing good could come of it. She had an army of dedicated followers ready to jump to her defense. I was no one.

Besides, I had resolved to call things off with Gavin. Sort of. Maybe?

Hundreds of people had already commented with their sympathy and support. Chelsea responded to a few, stating she was “sure everything would work out the way it was supposed to.”

~Ugh.~

I shoved the phone in my pocket, grabbed a charger, and headed out once again.

There was one person whose house I could walk to, and I knew she had several spare bedrooms.

Luckily, hers was one of the few numbers I had memorized.

“Hey babe.” Kris picked up on the first ring. “Glad to finally hear your voice. Now, where the fuck are you?”

“Two blocks from your place,” I told her. “Any chance I can crash with you for a bit?”

She paused. “There are already chocolates waiting for you on the pillow in the guest room.”

I breathed a sigh of relief.

“But you should know,” she continued hesitantly, “Gavin already called to check if you were here.”

~Dammit~.

Gavin knew Kris from when she had worked with him. Figures he would know how close friends we were as well.

“On the bright side,” she said, “he might not think to circle back. At least, not for a while.”

“Thanks, Kris,” I told her sincerely. “I owe you one. Or, probably several.”

She snorted. “I’ll see you in a minute. I’m uncorking the wine as we speak.”

“You really are the best.”