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PIPER

The elevator dinged as the doors opened.

It was another gorgeous day in New York.

The sun was shining and the heat... Well, I could do without it being quite so hot, but summers didn’t last forever.

There was nothing better than living on the East Coast, except living in The City That Never Sleeps.

Taxi drivers yelled at one another, people pushed and shoved to reach their destinations, and most of all, I had an amazing man that I could wake up to every morning.

Of course, I was late getting into the office, but that was never a huge problem since my boss, Mr. Johnson, was also the man I was currently engaged to.

I’d gone from being his secretary to his personal assistant—a move that made most women extremely jealous.

Yes, I was the typical secretary banging her boss.

The other women in the office gossiped about me, but I didn’t care.

I loved James, and he’d just proposed to me last night.

Hence, my ecstatic mood this morning. The diamond shining on my finger felt like a million pounds, but it went great with my manicure.

I was still walking on cloud nine, unable to believe that he’d actually proposed.

I had hoped this day would come, but deep down, I wasn’t sure it would actually happen.

James always told me I was beautiful and that he loved my brown curls and matching eyes.

He said I had kissable lips and a face made for the runway.

I was pretty sure he was just making up all that shit, but I’d never felt more beautiful than when he was watching me.

And now, I was beginning to believe everything he told me was true.

After all, there was a ring on my finger to prove how much he loved me.

“Good morning!” I said cheerily to Renee, the floor office manager.

She flushed red, looking away from me instantly.

That was odd, considering she usually shot me a look of disdain.

Maybe James finally had that talk with her about showing me some respect.

Even though it looked bad that I was screwing the boss, I was still the hardest worker on this floor.

I had crazy hours, and that didn’t include fucking my boss at work.

When I was here, I was only working. It was a rule I enforced the moment he asked me out, and we’d stuck to it religiously.

I strode down the halls, desperate to see a friendly face to share my good news with, but everywhere I looked, people scurried away from me.

In fact, it was way more than the usual busy morning atmosphere when the boss arrived early.

Shit, I hoped he hadn’t fired someone again.

That was usually when people started getting those nervous twitches.

I dropped my things at my desk outside his office and headed right in like I did every morning, but the office was silent. Walking over to his desk, I checked for any notes, but there were none. I knew he had a lunch meeting, but that was still hours away.

Just as I was walking out, my best friend Jeanie walked past, her face flushing red the moment she saw me.

“Hey, what’s with everyone this morning? It’s like you’re all terrified or something,” I grinned, crossing my arms over my chest, making sure my ring was shining spectacularly for her to see.

“Piper, hey!” she forced a smile, glancing away.

“What’s wrong? Why is everyone acting so strange this morning? Did James fire someone again?”

Her face turned beet red, and then her eyes landed on my ring and widened. “Piper…”

I squealed in delight, flinging myself into her arms for a hug, but when she reciprocated, she held me tight and I heard her sniffle. Stepping back, I held her at arm’s length.

“Hey, this is good news,” I chuckled. “Why are you so down? Is it not big enough or something?”

My smile slowly faded as she winced, her eyes darting to the conference room at the end of the hall.

“Piper…there’s something I have to tell you.”

“Okay…” I laughed at the serious expression on her face. God, she was acting so morbid this morning. “Whatever it is, nothing can ruin my mood. I’m engaged!”

I did a happy dance, bouncing from one foot to the other as I waved my hands in the air. I didn’t care if no one else was happy. I was finally getting married! At the age of twenty-nine, I thought it would never happen for me. But it was, and the ring proved it.

“Piper, do you remember that woman from London? The one James used to date?”

“Yeah, but that was like…three years ago.” I’d joined the company just before they broke up.

“She’s back. And she’s in the conference room with him.”

Normally, that wouldn’t bother me, but it explained the looks I’d been getting since I stepped off the elevator. Unease trickled down my spine as my gaze shifted down the long hallway.

“How long have they been in there?”

“About fifteen minutes.”

My finger brushed across the diamond on my left hand. It had to be nothing. After all, he literally just proposed last night. He loved me. We were lying in bed last night talking about all the things we wanted out of our wedding.

“It’s nothing,” I said, forcing a smile across my lips. “She works for the company. They were bound to see each other at some point.”

“Right.” Her tone was wholly unconvincing. “But…there have been rumors?—”

I rolled my eyes. “Not that again. There’s always some woman making up stories about sleeping with the boss. You know they’re all lies.”

“Are they?” She winced. “I’m sorry, but…I’m not so sure.”

Her words slashed through me, cutting me deep.

No, I didn’t believe them, and if I did, what did that say about me?

Still, I found myself walking down the hall, moving faster than I thought possible as terror gripped me.

My fingers hovered over the doorknob when I heard the first moan.

I had to be mistaken. Maybe it was muffled voices and I was only imagining things.

Still, my heart sank the moment I turned the knob.

Vomit rose in my throat as I watched him thrust into her naked body.

She was laid out on the table like a fruit tray, and his tongue was licking every inch of her.

Long, slender legs wrapped around his waist and her heels dug into his ass.

Her perky breasts bounced with every thrust as she called out his name.

He pressed his hand over her mouth, laughing as he whispered, “Not so loud. The whole office is going to hear you.”

He continued to laugh until he looked up, almost as if instinct told him he was no longer alone with her.

His eyes slowly lost all light as he stared at me, probably looking just as pathetic as I felt.

He stilled inside her, not even bothering to remove his dick from her when he finally found the courage to speak.

“Piper…”

Tears filled my eyes, but I couldn’t move, couldn’t force my feet to carry me away from the cliché before me. “Why?”

That was all I could say. The only thing that came to mind was him wrapped around my body just last night, holding me as he promised to love me forever. Did he ever mean it? Did he ever really love me, or was I just a guilty pleasure he would eventually tire of?

“Piper, we should talk.” He finally pulled his dick from her, scrambling to pull up his pants.

However, the harlot on the table just rolled her head to look at me, not at all scandalized that she was lying naked on the table.

“James, I thought you said you were getting rid of her?” Then her eyes roamed over my clothes, taking in how lacking I was compared to her posh English clothing that was now scattered on the ground.

The material would be wrinkled, for sure, but that brought me little pleasure at the moment.

“I…I don’t understand.”

The woman sat up, swinging her legs over the edge of the table as she crossed them at the knee, showing off her silky garters. Her chest was facing me, her tits perky and red from his beard scraping against her skin.

The very same marks I used to love seeing on myself.

God, I felt sick. I pressed my hand to my stomach, still standing there staring at his lover. “How long?”

“Piper,” he sighed, looking down at his feet as he shoved his hands on his hips. “I was going to tell you.”

My jaw dropped open. He was going to tell me, which meant this had happened more than once. “You go to London once every few months…” I trailed off, trying to count how many times he’d probably screwed her over the past two years…No, three years. I was such an idiot.

Anger brewed inside me as I turned and stomped out of the office, straight to my desk. By now, everyone was staring at me. They knew what I’d walked in on, and if they weren’t sure by now, the tears on my face confirmed what they all suspected was happening.

I jerked my desk drawer open and gathered what little personal effects I had, but before I could slam the drawer shut, James grabbed my arm, turning me to face him.

“Please, Piper. Can we discuss this?”

“Discuss how you’ve been fucking another woman for three years?”

His eyes flitted around the room at the spectators. “Not here,” he growled.

“Oh, not here, where everyone can see? You don’t think they all knew you were in there fucking her after you proposed to me last night?

” I laughed humorlessly. “Of course, you probably didn’t announce to anyone that you put a ring on my finger and promised me forever when your sex toy was in the conference room.

Silly me, they already knew about her. I was the only one naive enough to think you actually loved me. ”

He ground his teeth, clearly irritated that I was making a spectacle. “Piper?—”

“It’s okay. Really. I’m glad I found out now instead of after I hired people to play my parents at our wedding so I wouldn’t embarrass you. Thank God about that, right?” I snorted. “You should be grateful, too, that you won’t have to deal with a drunk escorting me down the aisle.”

“That has never been an issue,” he snapped.

“No? Then what was it? Do I not dress fancy enough for you? Or maybe you don’t like the fact that I wouldn’t service you at the office.

” I spun and faced everyone else, who were staring at me in shock.

“That’s right! I know you all thought I was giving him midday blowjobs, but in reality, I never let him touch me at his desk!

The position of office whore is open to anyone else who wants the job.

I’ll even throw in the ring!” I announced, sliding it from my finger.

Then I frowned and put it back. “On second thought, I think I’ll save this beauty as a souvenir.

Maybe I’ll even sell it one day and make a tiny profit.

” Turning back to him, I grinned. “I know you spared no expense. Think of it as a payoff for services rendered.”

I slammed the drawer shut and walked around him, storming out of the office.

I heard him calling for me, felt his feet pounding on the floor as I made my way to the elevator.

I refused to stop. His fingers brushed against my arm, and I didn’t think as I turned around and swung hard, slamming my fist into his face just like my defense instructor taught me.

The crack as my fist hit his nose sent a satisfying thrill through me. Even better was when blood gushed down his pristine white shirt. Sighing, I smiled and looked around the office one last time.

“It’s been wonderful knowing all of you. Fuck off!”

I turned on my heel and stepped onto the elevator as the doors opened. One of the board members was just getting off and looked to me before his eyes slid to James. Yeah, let him explain that one.

As I spun around, it suddenly hit me that I had nowhere to go since giving up my apartment. But one thing was clear, I wasn’t ready to step a single foot back into the apartment I shared with this asshole. What I needed was a drink.