Page 128

“If that’s what you believe, then I pity you.”

“I will never sign those documents,” she snarls.

“Then I’ll take you to court.”

A shock of pain splashes over her features at my harsh truth.

Lisa picks that exact moment to come back with the red wine and amuse-bouche. Celine snatches the wine, tossing it at me. The acidic liquid seeps into my shirt, staining the fabric.

“Go die in a hole.”

She stalks out of the restaurant without a second glance. An awkward murmur crackles among the remaining patrons, a few of them sneaking glances at my sorry state. I grab the napkin off my lap and wipe my face free of the two-hundred-dollar liquid.

My emotional reserves are depleted, but I grab my phone to call Halston. He needs to know what happened.

I stop when I see a bunch of texts from Verity.

VERITY:omg celine?!!!!

VERITY:I snuck back out

VERITY:I don’t think she saw me??

VERITY:why was she even there?

VERITY:does she know??

VERITY:Cullen???

VERITY:ahhh *melty emoji face*

VERITY:txt me when u can pls

The texts are a good sign; they mean she didn’t run away, that the sight of Celine didn’t scare her back into her shell.

But I can’t stop this feeling that everything is a ticking time bomb and that it will go off when I least expect it, the shrapnel of my secret killing everything I hold dear.

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

VERITY

My uterus feels like it is going to murder me.

I curl into a tighter ball on the couch, distracting myself from the pain as much as I can. I’ve already downed the maximum number of pain meds, so all I can do is wait. This has happened every single month without fail since I was eleven.

This week has been an emotional rollercoaster as is, what with having to play nice with Frankie and not pee myself every time Celine walked into the bullpen. Part of me is still worried that she saw me at the restaurant, that I wasn’t quick enough to hide. My knees are still sore from smashing them on the tiles and then crawling out of the restaurant.

I’d looked like I had a few screws loose, and I doubt I would be able to go back there any time soon. Fancy places like that tend to remember people like me.

I still haven’t gotten the full story from Cullen, just a reassurance that Celine hadn’t been there because of me. It’s almost worse that it had been a coincidence that she showed up, like the world is telling me how fraught this relationship with Cullen is.

“Do you want me to refill your hot water bottle?” Hannah pokes her head out of her room.

“No, I’m just going to accept my slow death.”

The doorbell buzzes, and Hannah presses the button to let in whoever is outside the building without any questions.

“You expecting someone?”