He held my hand as we walked out of the courthouse.
"Jade, we're husband and wife now."
The warmth in his voice was almost convincing. I pulled my hand free and gave a noncommittal hum.
A sports car pulled up in front of us. The window slid down, revealing a face I knew all too well.
Annette Simmons. The woman Stan had never stopped thinking about.
In my last life, he'd thrown away my life just to keep her happy.
"Stan! Congratulations." Annette stepped out of the car and looked me up and down, a challenge glittering in her eyes. "So this is Miss Kaufman? She really is pretty. No wonder you skipped my birthday party for her."
Stan's shoulders stiffened, barely perceptible.
He turned to Annette, a thread of anxiety woven through his voice. "Annette, what are you doing here?"
She pouted, sauntering over to loop her arm through his. "I just wanted to meet your new bride."
Then she pressed closer, tilting her face up at him. "Stan, my stomach's acting up again. Will you take me to the hospital? Please?"
Right in front of me. His wife of five minutes. She didn't even pretend to care.
Stan glanced back at me. "Jade, Annette's health isn't great. I'll take her to the hospital. The driver will bring you home."
It had been exactly like this the first time around. The day we got our marriage certificate, one phone call from Annette, and he was gone. I'd sat alone in that apartment all night, waiting like a fool. Back then, I'd actually believed he was just looking after her like a sister.
I gave them both a pleasant nod. "Sure. Take your time. I won't see you out."
Stan clearly didn't appreciate my composure. His brow furrowed and he opened his mouth to say something, but Annette was already pulling him into the car.
The sports car shrank into the distance. I took out my phone and called the finance department.
"Has the transfer come through?"
"Yes, Ms. Kaufman."
My lips curved upward.
"Wire everything to the offshore account. Immediately. Then call the police and report the company for suspected illegal fundraising. File for bankruptcy protection."
Back at the apartment, I swept every matching couple's item Stan had so carefully arranged into the trash. Then I booked the earliest flight out of the country.
I was reaching for the door handle when it slammed open from the other side.
Stan stormed in, seized my throat, and pinned me against the wall.
"Jade Kaufman, you played me!"
A vein pulsed at his temple. His eyes were wide, bloodshot. "You moved the money? And filed for bankruptcy yourself?"
My head was forced back against the wall. I stared at him through the suffocating pressure on my windpipe.
"That's right."
"Your money disgusts me, Mr. Delgado."
His grip tightened.
"You have a death wish!"
I managed to drag a smile across my face.
"Then kill me."
"Kill me, and you'll never see a cent of it."
His hand released all at once. I slid down the wall and crumpled to the floor, clutching my throat, coughing so hard my vision blurred.
He crouched down and gripped my jaw, forcing my face toward his.
"Jade. You think you can run?"
"Your father's ashes are still at the cemetery. Try me. I'll have someone scatter them by morning."
I couldn't stop the trembling.
In my last life, that was exactly the threat he'd used. My father's ashes, held hostage, to force me into donating bone marrow to Annette.
I lunged forward and slapped him across the face with everything I had.
"Stan Delgado, you're an animal!"
His head snapped to the side. He ran his tongue along the inside of his cheek where I'd struck him.
When he turned back, his face was pure fury.
"Fair enough."
"Since you won't behave, don't blame me for what comes next."
He stood and pulled out his phone.
"Cancel Jade Kaufman's flight. Freeze every bank account under her name."
A pause.
"And send someone to watch the cemetery. Around the clock."
He hung up and looked down at me, towering, absolute.
"Starting today, you don't go anywhere without my permission."
