Chapter 3

I forced myself to be calm, before calling Jimmy. "Jimmy, who is Cecilia?"

"Cecilia? She's ... She's the new girl?" He sounded nervous.

"Knock it off. I know you're all old school friends," I said, taking a deep breath. "Who is she?"

"She ... I ... Well ... " He stuttered and stammered, grasping for the right words to say. "She ... She's Hugh's old girlfriend. But don't get the wrong end of the stick. When HR sent me her application I was as shocked as you. Hugh didn't know anything about it either. Nobody was expecting her to come looking for a job."

I felt like I could barely breathe. I reached out my hand and grasped a nearby railing for support. "Tell me, why did they break up?"

"They started a company together but it began to struggle. When Cecilia's family ran into financial difficulties, she abandoned Hugh to face their problems alone. Despite all that, they had once been in love and they faced many troubles together. It's only natural that Hugh would want to help her out. I guarantee he only has eyes for you. He and Cecilia are a thing of the past."

I closed my eyes.

Were they really a thing of the past?

I suddenly realized that this so-called past was all around me, from our favorite restaurant to our first car, even the company we had worked so hard to build ...

I'm not someone who is scared to face the past. Everyone has their own history, and I'd never even asked about Hugh's; I trusted him completely. But I couldn't accept that his past might now be encroaching on our present.

"Reina, are you alright?"

"I'm fine. Do me a favor, call him for me, find out where he is." I struggled to keep my voice calm.

After a minute, Jimmy called back.

"He's not answering."

"Where was their favorite place to go, back in the day?"

"It ... It was a restaurant called Prosperity."

I wanted to laugh. That was our favorite restaurant, the place I'd just left.

"Reina ... Are you alright?"

I took a deep breath before responding, "Get on the phone to the airline, see if you can get me on an earlier flight. The earlier the better."

"Understood. Try not to worry too much, I'm sure he's just busy with work."

...

Paris Fashion Week was set to start in two days. In order to leave time for our anniversary dinner, I'd arranged to leave the day before it began. My flight was originally booked for lunchtime the next day, but Jimmy managed to have it moved forward to just after midnight.

I had just finished packing my luggage when Hugh returned home.

I didn't look at him. Instead, I picked up my handbag and double-checked that all my documents were in order. He wrapped his arms around me from behind.

"Your flight doesn't leave until tomorrow. Why are you packing now?"

"I changed flights. I'll be leaving in half an hour. How was your meal?" I said calmly, glancing at his shirt collar.

It was stained with flecks of oil, presumably from his meal with Cecilia.

Not only had he left me to eat on my own, he'd actually gone to another restaurant to eat with another woman.

He had clearly noticed that something was wrong. "You found out? Who told you?"

His face was so close to mine that I could smell the scent of the dishes on his breath. I felt sick. I could never go back to that restaurant again.

"When I went to pay, I suddenly realized your password is Cecilia's birthday. I had to put it in the system this morning."

"So, you know." He walked over to the window and lit a cigarette. Once he was done, he lit another.

"I confess, she stirred up a lot of feelings in me today. We used to be together and I haven't seen her in so long. Seeing her again ... it was emotional. She's been unlucky. Back when I was bankrupt, her mother passed away. Now, her father's sick too. What was I supposed to do? Completely ignore her? I'm not that sort of person." He suddenly walked over and sat down in front of me. He looked into my eyes and said, "But I know the person who matters most to me; I won't forget who it is who's been by my side all this time. It's you, Reina."

"What else did you do with her tonight?" I asked, wearily.

"Nothing. She wanted to apologize for how she treated me before. She's been filled with regret ever since. She wanted to treat me to a meal, that's all, and she wouldn't take no for an answer." A flash of guilt seemed to flit across his face and he immediately followed up, "I'm sorry. Nothing else happened, I promise. I left as soon as the meal was over."