My fingers found the ring on my own left hand. The one whose color had long since worn away. I rubbed it without thinking.
The bitterness wouldn't leave.
Under everyone's gaze, I silently chanted my father's name like a prayer and walked forward like a bridesmaid, presenting a ring to my own husband and his so-called foster sister.
But when Alexis reached for the velvet box, Bertram snatched it away first.
"Don't touch it. God knows how many germs are on that thing. I don't want you getting hurt."
The disgust in his eyes nailed my feet to the floor.
Ten years ago, when Bertram had confessed to me, I'd laughed and told him he actually looked pretty good in that costume. He'd kept those words close to his heart.
From that day on, the man who commanded boardrooms and crushed rivals had personally washed this mascot costume on a regular schedule.
Because he believed it was the token of our love. The keepsake of everything we were.
And now he found it too dirty to touch.
Maybe it was the airless heat trapped inside the costume, but every inch of my skin felt like it was being scorched alive with nowhere to hide.
So this was how obvious love and its absence could be.
When he loved you, everything about you was a treasure. When he didn't, everything about you was just filthy garbage.
The birthday party was in full swing. I stood in a corner of the crowd, my phone screen lighting up again and again.
Your divorce cooling-off period has expired...
I stared at the text message, my eyes flickering.
Finally. It was almost over.
"Prudence!"
Bertram's low voice snapped me back to reality. His gaze dropped to my phone screen.
I locked it instinctively and hid it behind my back.
But Bertram only gave me one long, unreadable look before speaking.
"Alexis wants to go to Subzero for a bit. You're coming with us."
Subzero. The most exclusive club in the city.
"You two go ahead. I'll just—"
I caught the utter indifference in his eyes and silently mocked myself for the panicked way I'd hidden my phone.
I should have known by now. He would never care.
But before I could finish, his cold voice cut me off.
"If you hadn't behaved yourself tonight, I never would have let you tag along. You should be grateful to Alexis for the privilege of setting foot in a place like that."
I watched his retreating back, my nails digging so deep into my palms they broke the skin.
Subzero Club.