I’d never been to the courthouse before. Even when Marcus told me that he was going to meet someone there during our date night, I remained in the car and didn’t even bother to step out. The courthouse was a great stone structure, with tall columns that looked like they belonged in a coliseum than anything else. There were a few Latin sentences written overhead, but I barely paid attention to them as I walked into the building. “Remember, we’re only here for preliminary hearings,” Ciara said as we walked in together. “You don’t pay attention to anyone or anything. You do exactly what I tell you, and we’ll be out of here in no time.”I smiled weakly at her, even though my heart was hammering in my chest. I thought I would be ready for this, but the fear that was snaking through my veins was starting to make me nervous. I knew I would see Marcus today, and that thought alone was enough to make me want to turn around and flee from the building. I hadn’t seen him since that day when he
MARCUSThere's just something so satisfying about putting a woman in her place. It's the most therapeutic thing you could possibly do, and it's so refreshing to know that where she might have thought she had the upper hand on you, it was never even a competition. Some women just deserved to be reminded of their place in life every once in a while, and it was such a beautiful thing to witness I should know; I'd done it over a million times already. I thought I was ready to see Olivia again. Even after everything, the only time I ever saw her was on the news when she tried to get into a supermarket and was hounded by paparazzi or angry New Yorkers who thought she was a cheating, gold-digging hoe. To be honest, a part of me felt bad for her. After all, this was the woman I'd loved for the better half of a decade now, and the woman who I'd convinced myself at one point that I was going to spend the rest of my life with. I truly believed that she was the one, and for a while things were
“Please tell me this is a joke.”Ciara looked like she wanted to murder someone. We were sitting in her office, and she was pacing the length of the room, her heels clacking on the tiles and filling the silence between us. I couldn’t bring myself to look up at her, or even say anything worthwhile. I just sat there and stared at my toes, a dull ringing sound in my ear. “Olivia, look at me,” she said, coming to stand in front of me. “Do you or do you not remember signing that document?”“I don’t remember signing anything,” I replied. “It has to be fake.”She placed the papers in front of me, and asked in a calm voice that sounded like she was holding back a storm, “Is this not your signature?”“It is,” I replied tersely. “Is that not your handwriting for the date?”“It is.”“But you don’t remember signing anything like this?”“No, I do not,” I replied. “If it was three days before the wedding, then I will definitely remember signing if I did.”And then, suddenly, it hit me like a ton
I barely paid attention to what anyone was saying in the room. Everyone seemed to be talking at the same time, and all I could hear was the sound of my own heart beating slowly. I kept my eyes fixed on the papers in front of me, and I couldn't even see the words properly. All I could think about was the visit from Marcus's mother, and the offer she'd made me. If I had just taken the money then, I wouldn't have faced any trouble. But now..."A million dollars is more than enough," Marcus's lawyer's voice cut through the noise. "My client is being more than reasonable.""Your client is worth fifty billion dollars," Ciara argued. "A million dollars is like a drop in the ocean for him.""And that's all she'll be getting from us," he said. "The offer does not change. Take it or leave it. We have no problem going to trial on this. But the fact that you asked for a settlement means you understand the situation is not in your favour. Just take the money and let's get this over with."One mil
THREE YEARS LATER Spring was in the air. I could feel it in the air, like a slight gust of wind that gently caressed my face as I walked down the street. The snow was melting on the sidewalks, and everywhere I looked, it looked like a little bit of colour was returning to the world. “Don’t you just love it when the sun is out for an entire day?” Rachel asked beside me. We were walking hand-in-hand out of King’s Cross station, and the drone of thousands of people milling all around us was almost deafening. And yet, despite how loud and claustrophobic it felt, I’d never been happier. “I’m just glad we got back in one piece,” I said. “That train ride was exhausting.”“Well, you’re the one who wanted us to come all the way back from Aberdeen in one day,” she said. “Honestly, I still don’t see why we couldn’t have stayed a little longer.”I merely shrugged, and adjusted my bag over my shoulder. I’d missed London, and it felt good to be back. We’d been away for three weeks, and I already
MARCUS“Babe, are you awake?”I groaned as I rolled over in bed and stared at the clock. It was still dark outside, and I almost banged my head against the headboard when I saw that it was still 4am. “What is it?” I asked. “I think we need to talk,” Emily said. “It’s important.”“More important than my sleep?” I asked, turning to face her. “You are aware of the board meeting I’m having at work, right?”“This is more important,” she said. “Trust me.”I could have just rolled over and fallen back asleep. I could have grabbed the duvet and headed to the second bedroom and tried to get some sleep. But something about the way she sounded caused me to sit up and switch on the light. I was surprised to see her beaming at me, her hair pulled up in a messy bun while she kept her hands behind her back. For a brief moment, my brain tried to adjust to the present, and it took me a moment to remember that this was Emily, not Olivia. Get it together, Marcus. “So?” I asked. “What is it?”“Close
I was never much of a party person. I hated the booming music that seemed to reverberate through my chest, and the suffocating heat of dozens of people packed into a tight room like sardines. Having a sweaty stranger pressed up against you and breathing heavily down your neck was not my idea of a fun evening.But there I was, squished up between two burly guys who thought it was a good idea to yell over my head instead of trying to get closer to each other. My head was buzzing, my neck was strained, and all I wanted was to get the hell out of here and head home. It was a Saturday night, for crying out loud. I should be in my room, curled up with a Sidney Sheldon classic and listening to nothing but white noise on my headphones. But Rachel insisted that this was for my own good, and I had already complained enough times. There was no getting out of it anymore. “Hey,” one of the guys said, placing his hand on my shoulder, “don’t I know you from somewhere?”“I doubt it,” I replied, twi
"You fucking bastard! So you've been cheating on me with my best friend this entire time?"I never thought I would say those words in my life. The idea that Marcus would ever cheat on me never even crossed my mind. We were always so happy together, or at least we used to be in the beginning. Now, I don't even recognise my husband anymore. I first started to suspect Marcus of cheating on me about six months ago when he returned from Hawaii. He had been growing even more distant, and I just couldn't figure out what had changed between us. Was it something I said? Was it something I did? No matter how hard I tried, my husband had completely given up on our marriage, and there was nothing I could do to fix it."Maybe he's just going through a midlife crisis," Emily had told me when I mentioned it to her. Emily was my best friend since elementary school, and we had always been as close as sisters. We grew up right next to each other, and we were like two peas in a pod. It was always Olivia
I was never much of a party person. I hated the booming music that seemed to reverberate through my chest, and the suffocating heat of dozens of people packed into a tight room like sardines. Having a sweaty stranger pressed up against you and breathing heavily down your neck was not my idea of a fun evening.But there I was, squished up between two burly guys who thought it was a good idea to yell over my head instead of trying to get closer to each other. My head was buzzing, my neck was strained, and all I wanted was to get the hell out of here and head home. It was a Saturday night, for crying out loud. I should be in my room, curled up with a Sidney Sheldon classic and listening to nothing but white noise on my headphones. But Rachel insisted that this was for my own good, and I had already complained enough times. There was no getting out of it anymore. “Hey,” one of the guys said, placing his hand on my shoulder, “don’t I know you from somewhere?”“I doubt it,” I replied, twi
MARCUS“Babe, are you awake?”I groaned as I rolled over in bed and stared at the clock. It was still dark outside, and I almost banged my head against the headboard when I saw that it was still 4am. “What is it?” I asked. “I think we need to talk,” Emily said. “It’s important.”“More important than my sleep?” I asked, turning to face her. “You are aware of the board meeting I’m having at work, right?”“This is more important,” she said. “Trust me.”I could have just rolled over and fallen back asleep. I could have grabbed the duvet and headed to the second bedroom and tried to get some sleep. But something about the way she sounded caused me to sit up and switch on the light. I was surprised to see her beaming at me, her hair pulled up in a messy bun while she kept her hands behind her back. For a brief moment, my brain tried to adjust to the present, and it took me a moment to remember that this was Emily, not Olivia. Get it together, Marcus. “So?” I asked. “What is it?”“Close
THREE YEARS LATER Spring was in the air. I could feel it in the air, like a slight gust of wind that gently caressed my face as I walked down the street. The snow was melting on the sidewalks, and everywhere I looked, it looked like a little bit of colour was returning to the world. “Don’t you just love it when the sun is out for an entire day?” Rachel asked beside me. We were walking hand-in-hand out of King’s Cross station, and the drone of thousands of people milling all around us was almost deafening. And yet, despite how loud and claustrophobic it felt, I’d never been happier. “I’m just glad we got back in one piece,” I said. “That train ride was exhausting.”“Well, you’re the one who wanted us to come all the way back from Aberdeen in one day,” she said. “Honestly, I still don’t see why we couldn’t have stayed a little longer.”I merely shrugged, and adjusted my bag over my shoulder. I’d missed London, and it felt good to be back. We’d been away for three weeks, and I already
I barely paid attention to what anyone was saying in the room. Everyone seemed to be talking at the same time, and all I could hear was the sound of my own heart beating slowly. I kept my eyes fixed on the papers in front of me, and I couldn't even see the words properly. All I could think about was the visit from Marcus's mother, and the offer she'd made me. If I had just taken the money then, I wouldn't have faced any trouble. But now..."A million dollars is more than enough," Marcus's lawyer's voice cut through the noise. "My client is being more than reasonable.""Your client is worth fifty billion dollars," Ciara argued. "A million dollars is like a drop in the ocean for him.""And that's all she'll be getting from us," he said. "The offer does not change. Take it or leave it. We have no problem going to trial on this. But the fact that you asked for a settlement means you understand the situation is not in your favour. Just take the money and let's get this over with."One mil
“Please tell me this is a joke.”Ciara looked like she wanted to murder someone. We were sitting in her office, and she was pacing the length of the room, her heels clacking on the tiles and filling the silence between us. I couldn’t bring myself to look up at her, or even say anything worthwhile. I just sat there and stared at my toes, a dull ringing sound in my ear. “Olivia, look at me,” she said, coming to stand in front of me. “Do you or do you not remember signing that document?”“I don’t remember signing anything,” I replied. “It has to be fake.”She placed the papers in front of me, and asked in a calm voice that sounded like she was holding back a storm, “Is this not your signature?”“It is,” I replied tersely. “Is that not your handwriting for the date?”“It is.”“But you don’t remember signing anything like this?”“No, I do not,” I replied. “If it was three days before the wedding, then I will definitely remember signing if I did.”And then, suddenly, it hit me like a ton
MARCUSThere's just something so satisfying about putting a woman in her place. It's the most therapeutic thing you could possibly do, and it's so refreshing to know that where she might have thought she had the upper hand on you, it was never even a competition. Some women just deserved to be reminded of their place in life every once in a while, and it was such a beautiful thing to witness I should know; I'd done it over a million times already. I thought I was ready to see Olivia again. Even after everything, the only time I ever saw her was on the news when she tried to get into a supermarket and was hounded by paparazzi or angry New Yorkers who thought she was a cheating, gold-digging hoe. To be honest, a part of me felt bad for her. After all, this was the woman I'd loved for the better half of a decade now, and the woman who I'd convinced myself at one point that I was going to spend the rest of my life with. I truly believed that she was the one, and for a while things were
I’d never been to the courthouse before. Even when Marcus told me that he was going to meet someone there during our date night, I remained in the car and didn’t even bother to step out. The courthouse was a great stone structure, with tall columns that looked like they belonged in a coliseum than anything else. There were a few Latin sentences written overhead, but I barely paid attention to them as I walked into the building. “Remember, we’re only here for preliminary hearings,” Ciara said as we walked in together. “You don’t pay attention to anyone or anything. You do exactly what I tell you, and we’ll be out of here in no time.”I smiled weakly at her, even though my heart was hammering in my chest. I thought I would be ready for this, but the fear that was snaking through my veins was starting to make me nervous. I knew I would see Marcus today, and that thought alone was enough to make me want to turn around and flee from the building. I hadn’t seen him since that day when he
"I can't believe you did something like this," Ciara snapped. "How could you have been so reckless?"She was stomping around the kitchen, her bottom lip trembling so much that it seemed like she was going to burst at any moment. I wished Brenda hadn't left, so I wouldn't be the only one on the receiving end of her anger. "It's not what you think," I said, looking up at her."Not what I think?" she shrieked. "Were you or were you not about to leak a sensitive footage Marcus and Emily to the press?""I would rather not answer that.""Do you not realise how terrible that would be for you?" she asked. “Once that footage gets out, Marcus will know it came from you. And if he can establish that you were the one who leaked it, do you not realise that you would be charged for committing a felony?”“But David said…”“Fuck David!” she snapped. “I fully intend to have a word with him after this. You’re my client, Olivia, not his. Do you understand that?”I was trying so hard not to cry, and I s
The first thing we had to do was make sure that everything we did was legal. David absolutely refused to do anything that would break the law in any way, so Brenda and I had to find loopholes in what we were trying to do. The first step was making sure that Emily hadn't taken my name off the lease of the apartment. Thankfully, I knew she was way too lazy to ever consider doing that. And when I checked and found that I was still technically a resident of the building, I was allowed to access the cameras. Then I had to get in touch with a tech genius that David happened to know. His name was Weasel, and David knew him from a case he worked a few years ago and he helped him crack it. When he told me this, I expected a thin, scrawny kid with a baseball cap and a large hoodie to show up at my door. But the guy who showed up was large and burly, with thick, coarse hair on his arms and a wild, untamed beard that completely covered his neck. He smelled of booze and cigarettes, and he carrie