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Even the lawyers look terrified.
I’m so taken aback by the change, it takes a moment for me to process the two men. One of them is in his early seventies. I’ve never met him before, but I know exactly who he is after having done some minor research on the company when I first started: Liam Stevenson, the CEO and third-generation owner of the family-run department store. The second man is in his mid-thirties—heartbreakingly handsome, a smile that can bring me to my knees, so gorgeous and charming he can get me to do nearly whatever he wants with it. I know this because the second man is none other than Will.
My boyfriend.
Soon-to-be ex, actually.
WILL
Oh, shit.
30
THE ACTUAL BIG REVEAL
Will sucks in a sharp breath when he sees me standing in the corner of the room. I, on the other hand, have stopped breathing altogether. Every single inch of my body is paralyzed in shock. As for the rest of the people in the conference room, no one’s said a word, choosing instead to wait on one of “The Liams” to speak first.
From the corner of my eye, I watch the older man squint at Will with a questioning look in his eyes. Not surprising, since the man I woke up next to this morning has gone as white as a sheet, his unblinking eyes never leaving mine. “Liam? What’s wrong?”
Will blinks once before swallowing, rolling his lips before turning back to… his father? No, he mentioned his father was dead. His grandfather, then? Is that who he is?
Yes. Yes, he’s Liam Stevenson’s grandson. Liam Stevenson has a grandson and I know this because?—
I gasp. The gala. The stupid event at the New York Public Library was forhim. No wonder he was freaking out when he saw me. He was afraid I’d find out he’s been lying to me.
He’s been lying to me.
But why? What was the reason behind keeping me in the dark about who he really is? And changing his name? Why would he tell me his name was Will if he goes by Liam?
But, wait… His mother calls him Will, too, so…
Oh, god. Oh god oh god oh god.
My brain spirals as it attempts to catch up with everything. With the lies. With the misinformation. With my own damn stupidity. As soon as I begin to have one realization about what this could mean, as soon as I begin a single thought, another comes crashing over me. The shock rocks me so deep in my core, I wobble on my feet.
Will takes a step toward me, reaches out a hand to catch me even though we’re on different sides of the room. His concern should be heartwarming, but it turns my confusion into anger because?—
The fucking audacity.
He wants to act like he still cares about me? After clearly having lied to me since late January? You don’t treat someone you care about like that.
Oh my god, it’s been months, and I’ve believed every single thing out of this man’s mouth without hesitation or question. And how dumb was that, trusting a stranger off the internet? With my luck, I should’ve known better. I should’ve known the universe was bound to send me yet another person who would ruin my life.
I feel the stinging in my eyes grow stronger, the tightness in my throat so intense I can barely swallow. Because betrayal has never hurt this much. Not when Roger stole all my money and ruined my credit, leaving me out on the street. Not when it was Molly letting me down as a friend, never believing I could achieve anything big in life unless it had to do with failure. Not Lena, for breaking my heart and turning out to be a nightmare instead of the mentor I needed. Not even when it was my own mother who used to leave me to fend for myself on her bad days, or make me have to take care of us both on her worst ones.
No. Will’s betrayal hurts so much more than all of those combined. And maybe it’s because of how deeply I trust him.Trustedhim. Until this very moment, the idea of Will pulling this level of deceit was unimaginable. Unthinkable.
Honestly, if future me had traveled back in the past to warn me about this moment in time, I would’ve thought the craziest part about our interaction would not be proof of the existence of time travel, but that she was making these claims.
Will? Lie and deceive in such a gigantic manner?
No.
Except that he did. Except that I am about five seconds away from bursting into tears because I trusted this man with every fiber of my being. With every single one of my thoughts. I let him into every nook and cranny of my heart only for me to realize I have no idea who he is.
I need to leave. I need to leave, to get out of here and find some sort of foothold on reality because—Jesus Christ, what the hell is going on?
Will stands by the conference room door, blocking my only exit out. There’s no question that, in order to get away from him, I’m going to have to go through him, and it will take every ounce of strength in my body to fight him if he asks me not to go. But it’s a necessary evil, since I don’t think I could stand to be here a minute longer.
