by Tara Hart
I had to wonder what had happened between them while I was gone. Savannah lies to me. It was more than just a kiss.
“Leave,” he shouted as he pointed at the door.
Savannah was already downstairs by the time I'd turned and walked away. I heard Jared punching the wall and tears pricked my eyes, but I blinked them away. This was necessary. His pain was necessary.
When I reached the front door I heard the sound of glass smashing. I wasn’t worried about my belongings, everything I had could be replaced. Savannah stopped, looking upstairs longingly as if she wanted to go and comfort him.
“Leave him be, Savannah.” I walked through the door. “Let him destroy the house. It’s the last thing he’ll ever own.”
I rushed to Savannah’s car, no longer wanting to acknowledge the chaos I was leaving behind. I wanted to get out of there and put this night behind us.
It took what felt like a lifetime for Savannah to start her car.
The entire drive home she cried. She tried to do so quietly, but a pathetic sob would escape every now and then.
“You need to get it together,” I told her. “He’s a snake. He deserves everything that’s about to happen to him.”
Savannah glared at me, the whites of her eyes bloodshot, tears still streaming from the corners.
“Seriously, Savvy. Enough.”
She pulled into her driveway and pulled the handbrake hard. “You pimped me out like a whore, Selina. You can’t tell me how to feel about this.”
Grabbing her purse from the backseat, she got out of the car and slammed the door behind her.
Once she was inside the house. I let the first tear fall.
“Fuck.” I hit the dashboard with the palm of my hand.
Tears streamed down my cheeks as I struggled to compose myself.
I thought it would feel different. I thought I'd feel empowered, but after ripping both of their hearts out, I felt as though the weight of the world was now on my shoulders.
I was a bad person.
I was the devil.
But I was in love and I would have done anything to be with him.
Chapter 20
I never planned on marrying Jared. I met him when I was twenty at a rooftop party in Seattle. He mistook me for Savannah, questioned what I was wearing and called me crazy. So naturally, I offered to share a cab ride home with him.
I thought I would fuck him once and be done with it, but he was the second man who ever gave me goosebumps, and after years of pining after the man who took my virginity, I told myself that I loved Jared.
He was a catch and he had money—lots of it. Not that I realized that until our second date.
Jared could provide me the comfort and security I needed, and he wasn’t bad to look at either. He was convenient and I could learn to love him or so I thought.
In all honesty, I never stopped loving Theo. I never moved on with my life. No one could compare, and quite quickly, I wondered if I was spending my life searching for a love that didn’t exist.
Theo was different—completely unlike anyone I’d ever met and I knew I’d never meet anyone else like him in my lifetime.
Jared was a distraction for the most part. A filler. He provided what I needed and when I found Theo again, everything was how it was meant to be, except Theo was a stereotypical artist. He didn’t care about materialistic things. He collected moments, not things.
It took Savannah one day to get Jared into bed. One lousy day for that bastard to cheat on me. I thought there would be some kind of resistance, but there wasn’t an ounce of hesitation from either of them.
It hurt at first, even though I was the one who asked for it, part of me wanted Jared to push her away, to reject her advances because I was the one he wanted, but in the back of my mind, I knew there wasn’t a chance of that.
Jared always had a thing for Savannah. I could tell by the way he looked at her, the way he spoke about her. He'd get this stupid look on his face when she entered the room. She was the only one who could make him blush and fumble with his words. He thought I couldn’t see it, that I was completely oblivious to what was always right in front of my eyes.
I mean what was so special about her? We look exactly the same.
“He’s been in love with someone else for our entire marriage,” I told my lawyer.
He nodded his head as he continued to take notes. He was old and round, and his glasses sat on the tip of his nose like a librarian. He’d been recommended to me by another Seattle socialite. She received everything in her divorce. She wanted it all. The kids, the house, the umpteen holiday homes and the little old man that sat before me made it a reality.
“And the proof you have…” He stopped to clear his throat. "Is in the form of a movie?”
I nodded my head, my gaze holding his without a blink of my false eyelashes. “Yes.”
He thought it was distasteful, I could tell, but I wanted to be real with him. I’d made his job easier and he should have been thanking me, not passing judgment.
Jared had hired one of his oldest friends as his lawyer and I knew they wouldn’t be playing by the rules. Sean was a snake and a great lawyer, meaning my little old man had his work cut out for him.
“And he cheated on you with your...err, twin sister.”
I nodded my head. How many times did I have to retell the story? My husband cheated on me with my sister. Big fucking deal.
“Yes, but he says her name on the tape...multiple times.”
He leaned back in his chair, crossing one leg over the other as he shifted his glasses even further down his nose.
“Mrs. Shaw, I’m going to level with you.”
I strummed my fingers against my thigh. “Please do.”
“The public is your friend in this case. If they see you as the victim, the case is more likely to go in your favor.”
My eyelashes fluttered repeatedly. “But I am a victim.”
He saved me the ordeal of an eye roll.
“Well, make people see it. Use your status as a weapon. Be seen without your wedding ring. Be photographed looking miserable and when the time is right, you should sell your story to the highest bidder.”
I gulped. “The tabloids?”
I couldn’t do that to Savannah. She wouldn’t survive it. No way.
He nodded. “You will change the public’s perception of your husband. They need to see your vulnerable side.”
“And Savannah?” I was afraid to ask.
He shrugged nonchalantly. “You can take that detail or leave it. It will hurt her more than him."
He threw a plastic binder on the table, stuffed full of documents, all bound together tightly by clips.
“Read through these documents. It details the lawsuit in full. Details about your supposed Alienation of Affection have been included, but your sister’s name has been left out of the documents. Read these, familiarize yourself with them because from this moment on.” He pointed at the thin plastic folder dramatically. “This is your new truth.”
I nodded my head as I watched him walk out of Savannah’s apartment.
It felt weird having the meeting there, surrounded by her tacky decor and precious family photos, but I didn't want to be seen walking into his office. I wasn't ready for the speculation to start just yet.
I'd been at Savannah's for two nights, but it felt like much longer.
She was acting weird. I’d been in France for two weeks and all of a sudden, I didn’t recognize my sister. I used to be able to read her mind, but now I couldn’t even take a guess as to what she was thinking. She was quiet like her mind was somewhere else and she looked at me as if she blamed me for everything that had gone wrong in her life.
I needed to leave, to place some distance between us, but there was no way I could move into Moms. The questions alone would prove unbearable. I needed space to think about the next steps.
I was eyeing the binder the lawyer left behind when Savannah entered the room.
&n
bsp; “He’s gone?” She sat on the sofa across from me, tucking her legs beneath her as her arms crossed over her chest.
“Yes.”
“What did he say?” Her sudden interest caused alarm bells to ring in my ears.
I felt as though I couldn't trust her.
I shrugged as if I didn’t give a crap. “He wants me to read through some paperwork.”
Her face was stoic. “Does he think you have a case?”
Narrowing my eyes, I focused on her face. “Of course. He thinks I’ll win and Jared will be left with nothing but his struggling company and his precious car.”
She sighed, rubbing her hands over her face as if she was exhausted. “Why are you doing this Selina?” she asked. “Why do you have to destroy the man who gave you the world?”
I scoffed. “Because he fucked my sister.”
Savannah laughed ironically. “You’re the one who pushed us together. He never would have done it if I didn’t make the first move.”
I studied her face for a long drawn out moment. Savannah was quite convincing when she wanted to be, but we both knew the truth. “Come on, Savannah, you don’t expect me to believe that was the first time you’ve fucked?”
The blood left her face. She turned pure white, her green eyes wide as if she’d been caught in a lie. There was my answer, right there. Her look of pure fear was the ultimate admission. They’d been sleeping together longer than she’d lead on.
I stood up, my hands made their way to my hips as I looked down upon her as I’d often done so over the years.
“If you want to look at who’s to blame in this, then maybe you should take a look in the mirror.”
She shook her head, for once she was going to stick up for herself. “You’re the one who’s been deceiving Jared all these years, Selina. You’re the one who caused this. You’re the one who’s been lying.”
I closed the distance between us. She was so close that I could smell her sickly sweet perfume.
“I’m not a liar,” I said between clenched teeth, knowing full well that I’d been lying to myself all along.
Chapter 21
I clenched my jaw as I read the headline.
‘Selina Shaw stuns on the arm of her husband, putting an end to divorce rumors.’
I scrolled through the story, stopping at each picture, my teeth grinding together as my jaw worked overtime. Jared looked strapping in an all-black suit, the only color in his ensemble coming from the red tie enveloped around his neck.
It was the same shade of red as her outfit. The fishtail dress melded to her curves perfectly. The same red mirrored in her meticulously applied lipstick.
She had everything right. The low ponytail pulled to the side, the bronzed cheeks highlighted by a slight shimmery powder.
My gaze fell to her hand that rested effortlessly on her hip. There were three rings on her finger, perfect replicas of my own rings.
She was the perfect reflection of me.
Skimming through the story, I read how the couple looked more in love than ever, how Jared couldn’t keep his eyes off his wife and how ‘Selina’ was glowing after a turbulent few months.
I threw my phone to bed and fell back against the pile of cushions.
They’d played me. Jared and Savannah had plotted against me and successfully pulled off something that I would never have expected from either of them.
I didn't know what was worse, the betrayal from my sister or the way they were looking at one another in those photos.
It made me sick.
I’d deliberately left Savannah out of this mess. Her name wasn’t mentioned in any of the legal documents on my request. I hadn’t told my closest friends, I hadn’t even told our own mother of the betrayal, but there she was, playing dress-ups and happy families with my husband.
Enough was enough. Savannah had escaped from this mess unscathed, but now she had chosen his side. I couldn’t allow their charade to go on any longer.
I was going to sell my story—the whole story—to the highest bidder and destroy both of them.
Tears streamed down my cheeks as I contemplated my next move. Taking my phone from the bed, my hand was shaking, but I scrolled through my contacts determined to get the truth into the headlines by morning.
My cell dropped from my hands when I saw his name on the screen. The phone vibrated against the comforter as I tried to compose myself.
“Hello.” My voice was nasally.
“Mon cheri, what is it?”
God, I missed the sound of his voice. Nothing soothed me more. Nothing.
I sobbed into the phone. “I don’t know.”
“You don’t know why you’re crying?” he asked incredulously.
I sniffled into the phone. “No.”
He sighed deeply in that controlled way that he’d mastered. Instead of getting angry, he sighed. It gave him a chance to gather his thoughts and form the perfect response.
“Has something happened?” he asked. “You can tell me anything.”
I contemplated whether to tell him the whole story but quickly decided against it. After all, I knew he wouldn’t approve of any of my escapades. He was far too honest to agree with such a thing. He was too good for me.
“Nothing is going according to plan,” I started. “I wanted to have everything finalized and to have left by now, but my husband is playing games and I’m scared I’m going to lose what's rightfully mine.”
He didn’t respond for a moment. I thought the line had gone dead, but I heard his gentle breathing through the receiver. He cleared his throat before speaking again.
“Do you know why I love you, mon cheri?”
I shook my head as if he could see me.
“I love you because you’re beautiful and warm, and your kisses taste like cherries. I love you because you’ll sit in a car with me for days on end even though you hate road trips. I love you because you’re the same beautiful American girl you were ten years ago and you don’t even realize it.”
I thought back in time. I felt as though I’d changed considerably, but apparently, I wasn’t fooling anyone.
“You don’t need money in this life, mon cheri. You’ve had it and it didn’t make you happy then, so why do you need it now?”
He had a valid point that I hadn’t considered until now.
“I don’t need the apartment in the city or the big house in the country, all I need is you by my side,” he said.
Fresh tears escaped as I let his words sink in. It’s like he was a poet as well as a painter. He made me feel things that I didn’t know I was capable of feeling.
“Mon cheri?”
I grabbed a cushion from the bed and dried my tears away.
“Yes. I’m here.”
He laughed lightly. “I didn’t mean to make you cry.” I could hear the smile in his voice.
“I know. It’s just everything you said is right.” I dried the last of my tears with the back of my hand before reclining back on the bed.
“I’m so glad you called,” I said dreamily as I closed my eyes.
I would try and get through to Jared another way. Going through the tabloids would achieve nothing more than poisoning those who I cared about most.
Theo had saved me once again. He’d saved my sanity and he’d saved my relationship with my sister.
But he’d never know what he’d done because I’d never tell him the full story of how I planned to destroy everyone close to me.
How I planned to destroy myself.
Chapter 22
I entered the house silently. A home that was once my own now felt foreign to me. It even smelled different, like dirty sports socks and cigars. I walked up the carpeted stairs for the last time, my fingers trailing along the cold, metal bannister.
The bedroom door was ajar, inviting me inside. I fumbled over to the king sized bed, sitting on the edge as my hands traveled over his body. I was surprised to feel that he was completely naked. Jared never slept naked. Not unless h
e was completely wasted.
He shuffled in the bed, his body leaning into my touch. I wrapped my fingers around the base of his cock and took it in my mouth.
He inhaled through his nose. “Fuck yeah,” he breathed.
I wanted to laugh, but his hands came to the back of my head, pushing his cock deeper into my mouth.
“Fuck, Savvy.”
I pulled my hand away instantly. I wanted to cry, but instead, I laughed. I couldn’t show him how delicate I was. Not now.
His body tensed instantly. He fumbled with the light switch, his ass shuffling up the bed.
“What the fuck are you doing here, Selina?”
I pulled the bedsheets off the bed and threw them to the floor. I stood in front of him with my hands on my hips. I blinked to fight back the tears. I was saying goodbye to eight years with him and I didn’t want to get sentimental now.
“Expecting someone else, sweetheart?” The words hissed out of me.
He bit back with some vicious remarks that I didn’t even acknowledge. Something about how Savannah was constantly down for a fuck, how desperately she would beg for his cock. I chose not to hear his words instead, sitting on the edge of the bed, my fingers dangerously close to touching him.
“Don’t fucking touch me.” His voice squeaked out of him.
I brought my bottom lip between my teeth as I leaned forward. One of the straps of my red dress fell from my shoulder, causing the top to gape, ensuring Jared had an ample view of my breasts.
His breathing intensified and I wanted to laugh, but I managed to hold it back. Men are so fucking easy to manipulate.
I spread my legs wide, showing Jared what he’d been missing for the past few weeks. The sight of my bare pussy caused him to gulp. I didn’t like to wear underwear and Jared loved that about me.
“Fuck.” He ran his fingers through his hair.
I watched in delight as his cock rose to attention.
