Harper POV
Attendance at the charity gala wasn't a request; it was a mandate.
Eli had made that abundantly clear through his assistant, given that I had blocked his number. If I wanted the divorce to go smoothly, I had to play the part of the doting wife one last time for the cameras.
I wore black. It was the only color that felt right. I was mourning the death of my marriage.
The ballroom was suffocating, a sensory overload of crystal chandeliers, overpriced champagne, and fake smiles.
Eli found me near the bar. He looked dashing, as always. The devil usually does.
"You look beautiful," he said, leaning in to kiss my cheek.
I turned my head sharply, so his lips grazed my hair instead.
He pulled back, his jaw tightening. "Don't make a scene, Harper."
He pulled a velvet box from his pocket.
"Here," he said. "For tonight."
He opened it. A diamond necklace glittered under the lights. Gaudy. Massive. Ostentatious.
"Put it on," he ordered.
"I hate diamonds," I said quietly. "You know I only wear pearls."
"Pearls are for old women," he sneered, his voice low and cruel. "Wear the diamonds. They show people how much I value you."
Value. Like a car. Like a house. Like an asset.
I let him clasp the cold metal around my neck. It felt like a noose.
We went to the stage. Eli took the microphone, commanding the room instantly.
"I want to thank my beautiful wife, Harper," he boomed, flashing his million-dollar smile. "She has been my rock through the hardest years of our lives."
The applause was thunderous. I stood there, a statue of ice, forcing the corners of my mouth up into a rigid imitation of joy.
Then, the doors at the back of the hall banged open.
A hush fell over the crowd.
Kasey walked in. She was wearing a red dress that screamed for attention-a violent slash of color against the tuxedoed crowd.
And she was holding the hand of a small boy.
Cody.
He looked so much like Eli it was painful. The same dark hair. The same eyes.
They walked right up to the stage.
"Daddy!" Cody chirped. His voice carried clearly through the silent room.
Eli froze. The microphone dropped to his side with a dull thud.
Kasey smiled. It was a predatory, victorious smile.
"Sorry we're late," she said loudly, her voice projecting to the back rows. "Cody just couldn't sleep without saying goodnight to his father."
The whispers started. A low buzz that grew into a roar.
Cody pointed a chubby finger at Eli.
"Daddy, are you playing the game again?" the boy asked innocently. "Like when Leo went to sleep in the water?"
The room went dead silent. Vacuum-sealed.
My heart stopped.
"What?" I whispered. The word scraped out of my throat like broken glass.
Cody looked at me, then back at Eli. "Daddy and Auntie Kasey were playing in the bedroom. Leo went to the pool. Then Leo went to sleep."
The truth hit me like a physical blow.
Eli hadn't been "working overseas" when Leo died.
He was in the house. He was in bed with Kasey.
While our son drowned in the pool, his father was upstairs cheating on his mother.
I let out a sound that wasn't human. A ragged, animalistic keen.
I lunged at Eli.
"You killed him!" I screamed. "You were there! You were there and you let him die!"
Eli looked panicked. Not guilty. Panicked.
"Harper, stop! He's a child, he doesn't know what he's saying!"
Kasey stepped onto the stage. She walked right up to me, invading my space.
"Oh, honey," she purred. "Face it. You were a bad mother. Eli needed comfort."
She reached out and unclasped the diamond necklace from my neck.
"This doesn't belong to you anymore," she said. "It looks better on the mother of his living son."
She clasped it around her own neck.
I saw red.
I reached for the necklace. I wanted to rip it off her. I wanted to rip her apart.
"Give it back!" I shrieked.
I grabbed her arm.
Suddenly, two strong hands slammed into my chest.
Eli.
He shoved me. Hard.
"Don't touch her!" he roared.
I flew backward. My high heels slipped on the polished floor.
I crashed down. My knee hit the stage with a sickening crack.
Pain exploded up my leg.
I lay there, gasping, looking up at them.
Eli stood over me, shielding Kasey and Cody. His face was twisted in rage. Not at them. At me.
He chose them. In front of everyone. He physically hurt me to protect the woman who helped him let our son die.
"Get her out of here," Eli barked to security. "She's hysterical."
He turned his back on me. He put his arm around Kasey and led her and Cody off the stage.
Kasey looked back over her shoulder. She winked.
Flashbulbs popped. The crowd murmured.
I was lying on the floor, broken, humiliated, and discarded.
I reached into my clutch bag. My fingers closed around the only thing that mattered.
A small, chipped wooden toy boat. Leo's favorite.
I gripped it until the sharp edges cut into my palm.
\ The pain grounded me. The pain cleared the fog.
I looked at Eli's retreating back.
I stopped crying.
"Eli," I whispered into the floorboards.
"You destroyed my world."
I squeezed the toy boat.
"Now, I'm going to burn yours down."
