Chapter 1
The silence in our penthouse apartment felt heavier than usual on my twenty–eighth birthday
Edward had left early for an important client meeting” kissing my forehead with the same mechanical affection had given a pet.
I sat alone at our marble dining table, stanng at the single cupcake’d bought mysel, wondering when become so pathetic.
The bathroom door was slightly ajar when I heard his voice–soft tender everything it hadn’t been with me in months.
Happy bday, beautiful I wish i could be there with you!
My blood tumed to
Today
was my birthday, nobelas
I checked my phone frantically
I was losing my mind. October 15th My birthday.
( closer to the memom, my bare feet sem on the cold male
Through the crack, I could defection in the mist his face mated by his phone screen
The expression I saw thele–pute adoration, the kind he’d once reserved for me–made my chest tighten with a pain so sharp I had to bite my ip to keep from crying out
cant wait to see you in the dress,” he continued his voce a whisper i had to stain to hear.
“You’re going
What drast
look absolutely stunning”
The only recent shopping Edward had done was my heart stopped.
The Black gatent bag hanging in our clot
The one had told me to cling was a suprise for “later“”
1 backed away from the bathroom, n
my hands shaking the pieces fell into place.
The li rights, the detracted kutsen, beway hard topped noticing when changed my hair or wore his favore perfume
Edward planning auriforme
My phone buzzed with a notification from Instagram
The one Edward had bought
The one meant to be my sunse
tread Dinnerwth my favorite person? bithdaygirl #blessed
My fave person
Those three words shameed something inside me that had even realized was hanging by a thoad.
I sedmough the comments, my vision bluing with teas i refused to let fal
Edward had bead the photo
Edward had commened “Beaunfutati
myrection in the darkened window–awoman whod been slowly disappearing invisible in her own home
My husband was in our bathroom, wapening love songs another
I sat alone on my birthday eating a convenience store cupcake like some magic rothcom heroina.
I opened Instagram, found isabella post, and typed with study fingers “Happy day! Hope young as my band bought up–and. This wont man in all yours
send before I could second guess myself, then tuned off my phone and poured myself a glass of the expensive wine Edward had been saving for a “special occasion”
Apparently, I’d been night.
Tonight was special–it was the light i shooted pretending our hamage was wachsing
From the bathroomhead Edwards wese in pa
panic.
ela? Bela, what happened Someone commented on your photo-
led for the fate in mo
Let the garment begin
