ee nights, I thought I h

ionate. I looked at him sleeping beside me, his sharp profile softened by the morning

art of something real. I b

to grab my laptop. His computer was on, the screen glowing faintl

hat. But a knot of unease formed in my stomach. I leaned

. The videos were from the last three days, inti

am' s message was typed ou

Don' t worry, Chloe, I' d rather die tha

athe. I clicked on the audio file that follow

ple to mess with her just to protect my reputatio

ple? What d

e was hoarse, filled with a d

loose, it' s a blessing anyone would touch her. Besides, I have all the co

om. "So many people." "Loose." "A

who had held me for t

the wall. The pieces of my five-year marriage

m. The seductive lingerie, the romantic dinners, even the time

of the hallway. Once, after I'd put the sleeping pills in his wine, he' d forced himself to s

hed from physical desires. I told myself he wa

was so m

ke sense of this nightmare. There, on his bedside table, was a framed pict

d at me and saw her. And for the last three days, he hadn't

f the study, out of the bedroom, down the stairs. My mind was blank. All I could thin

love I thought I had finally earned was a lie. The man I had dedicated my lif

a joke. A cruel, elaborate performance for an audience of two: him and my sister. He