Page 2 of The Vow Thief
“How many times do I have to reject you, Lily? It cannot be good for your self-esteem. I’ve already told you... it is never going to happen.”
Her lips curled like I had just given something away.“You say one thing, Matt, but your eyes tell me something else. Relax. Besides, keep your voice down. We don’t want Mr. Holloway finding out about us, do we? I was only reminding you that you have options.”
“Us? Options?” I repeated, my voice hard.“Stay out of my personal life.”
I walked past her without waiting for a reply, my hand raking through my hair in a rough, frustrated drag. My steps hit hard against the floor, as my thoughts circled the same truth: Lily would never stop haunting me. I needed to talk to Mr. Holloway. I needed to own up to my affair with her and shut this down.
---Lily’s POV---
I dropped my smile the second his back turned. I walked slowly and dipped into my cubicle and immediately began drumming my nails against the desk. Why was he playing hard to get? He had been warmer toward me these last few weeks. He even danced with me at his partner announcement dinner in front of everyone. We looked good in that photo, perfect even. Everyone saw it. Proof.
And that night, when I called for a hook-up, he only said no because he had been drinking. Too much champagne, too worried he would have a repeat of the night we drank too much wine, and he couldn’t get hard. And now he acted like he was above me? Like I didn’t exist? After everything? After I was the one who consoled him, the one who knew what he needed? He thought he could humiliate me, erase me, crawl back to Sarah like I was never here?
Fuck you, Sarah Taylor.
This was not over.
Chapter 1 - The Cabin and the Note
Sarah's POV ...the cabin continued
I sat on the edge of the bed with Matt’s relocation offer open across my lap. I must have read the bullet points three times, and each time I read them, I saw something new: more money, Charleston, South Carolina, a full relocation package. The company would set Matt up until he found a house. It was written to sound easy. Seamless. A step up in every sense.
More responsibility, but also full autonomy to hire his own staff. His name would now be on the company: Holloway, Taylor & Associates.
I let out a defeated breath. How could he keep this from me?
Then I saw it. Stuck to the bottom corner of the signature page, a pale yellow square of smugness.
Matt, can you imagine Charleston this time of year? The nearby beach and the romantic charm. Let me know when to start packing. Reach out if you have questions. You already know I am happy to help.
Lily
I could feel the heat traveling up my neck. Was this the plan? A move with her?
Was this entire weekend just for show so he could leave and finish the job of destroying me and this family? The fucking nerve of this guy.
I closed my eyes, fingers curling around the pages until they crumpled.
I could hear Matt downstairs whistling while he placed something into the microwave. Just moving about like life was normal while I held the blueprint of his future. Why would he keep something like this from me? Did I ever know this man?
I descended the stairs slowly, the papers in one hand, the shirt I had gone to get for him draped over the other. I took a deep breath, trying to manage the complete meltdown going on inside me. I placed the shirt on the arm of the couch and held the envelope out, every accusation already burning on the tip of my tongue.
“What’s this, Matt?”
He glanced down, saw the letterhead, and straightened.“Open it. Tell me what you think.”
My voice was ice.“I already opened it. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because I just got the offer and was going to go through it with you, Sarah,” he said, carefully.“Listen, not everything I do is smoke and mirrors. The decision to go to Charleston will be about you and the kids. Personally, I like the idea, but if you don’t want to go for any reason, we’ll stay here.”
I narrowed my eyes.“And Lily? Does she come with the package, too?”
Matt’s head snapped back in disbelief.“What?”
I held up the Post-it note like it was a physical copy of his infidelity.
He read it, probably for the first time, but it didn’t change the fact that it existed. In this moment, it wasn't some note hidden away in the middle of a few papers; it was right here between us.
