It’s not that year again
Chapter 1
My fiancé, Mark, was trying to force me to call off the wedding, so he bankrupted my dad’s company, leaving us with millions in debt. Dad, already struggling with heart issues, had a
massive attack and was rushed into the ICU.
I was on my knees, begging Mark for money to
cover the surgery when my childhood best
friend, Ethan, showed up out of the blue. He
got my dad a top–notch surgeon, and was by
our side at the hospital, day and night.
A week later, Dad had another heart attack. To
try and give him some peace, Ethan got down
on his knees at Dad’s bedside and swore he’d
marry me and take care of me forever. Dad
seemed to find some calm before he passed.
After the funeral, I was numb and heartbroken. I
officially called off the engagement with Mark
and, in a kind of daze, I married Ethan.
Five years later, I accidentally overheard a
conversation between my ex, Mark, and Ethan.
<
“Man, you’re a genius, letting her break up with
me so willingly. If she ever found out you were the one who killed her dad, she’d probably try to kill you, right?”
I froze, my hand still on the door of the private dining room. Mark’s mocking voice carried on. “You’re really cold–blooded, Ethan. She’s
known you her whole life, treated you like a
brother. I bet she never even considered that
you’d be the one to bankrupt her father’s
company.”
“I wouldn’t have taken the heat for this all these
years if it wasn’t for Ava. I may not like her, but
I’m not evil enough to kill someone’s dad,”
Ethan retorted, his voice tight with anger, the
sound of his glass slamming on the table.
“I’ll spend my whole life making it up to Claire. I
helped you then because I wanted Ava to be
happy. If you ever hurt her or make her cry, I
will end you.”
Mark chuckled, “Man, you’re so devoted. Too
bad Ava picked me first. Go be a knight in
<
shining armor for your Claire, after all, you did
kill her dad. Hope she doesn’t come back to
haunt you at night.”
I spun around and the glass I’d been holding
shattered against the door.
The sound of approaching footsteps sent me
running. I bolted to the bar downstairs and
downed a shot of whiskey in one gulp, the
unfamiliar liquor bringing tears to my eyes.
My mind was spinning. It wasn’t Mark, it was
Ethan, the guy who paid for Dad’s surgery. He
must’ve said something to Dad that day that
caused that second heart attack. No wonder
Dad stared so hard at Ethan, with such a
piercing look.
And all these years of marriage, his tender love,
it was all just his twisted way of trying to pay
me back? How pathetic.
A wave of pain and anger flooded through me. Just as I was reaching for another glass,
Ethan’s arms wrapped around me from behind,
his face buried in my neck, his voice thick with
drunken tenderness.
<
“Claire, where have you been? I missed you so
much… Come home with me, Claire, I love
you… I love you so damn much…”
Every time Ethan got drunk, he’d mumble his
love for me, his friends all claiming it was
‘liquid truth‘ and that he loved me fiercely. But
now, it all felt so wrong.
I pulled away from him as casually as possible,
steering him to the car.
Ethan slumped against my lap, his breathing
even, seemingly asleep.
“Ava… Ava… why didn’t you pick me, why…”
I finally heard it, the name that had haunted his
dreams so many times.
Ava. Ava Reynolds.
The woman who stole my fiancé, also Ethan’s
“one who got away”.
So Ethan never got over her, not even when he
was pretending to be in love with me. I’d
underestimated his obsession with Ava.
His phone slipped from his pocket. I bent to
pick it up and saw a message pop up on the
screen.
