Chapter Two

"Sebastian." His name felt strange on my lips after so many years. "How did you get my number?"

He laughed softly. The sound sent shivers down my spine. "I've always known how to find you, Kelsey. I've been watching."

"That's creepy." But my heart raced for reasons I didn't want to think about.

"Is it? Or is it romantic?" His voice turned serious. "I saw what happened tonight. I saw how he treated you. How she touched him."

"You were at the party?"

"I'm always around, even when you don't see me. Waiting. Planning." He paused. "Leave him, Kelsey. Come back to me."

I should have hung up. I should have blocked the number. Instead, I whispered, "I can't."

"You mean you won't."

"It's complicated. The marriage, the money, everything—"

"I don't care about complicated." His voice was hard now. "I care about you. I've cared about you for seven years while you played house with that bastard."

Anger flared in my chest. "You don't get to judge me. You don't know what my life has been like."

"Then tell me." His tone softened. "Meet me. One hour. The old coffee shop on Miller Street. The one where we used to study."

"That place closed years ago."

"I bought it. I reopened it. I kept it exactly the same." He paused. "I kept everything the same, hoping you'd come back someday."

My throat tightened. "Sebastian—"

"One hour, Kelsey. If you don't come, I'll understand. But if you do..." He took a breath. "If you do, I promise I'll help you destroy him."

The line went dead.

I stood in the parking lot, staring at my phone. This was crazy. Sebastian was my past. A past I'd buried deep when I chose a different life.

But that life was crumbling around me now.

Miranda found me ten minutes later. "What happened? You look like you saw a ghost."

"Maybe I did." I showed her the texts.

Her eyes went wide. "Sebastian Hart? THE Sebastian Hart? The tech billionaire who just took over half the city's real estate?"

"He wasn't a billionaire when I knew him. He was just a boy who loved computers and wanted to change the world."

"And you loved him."

"I thought I did. Then I met Flinn, and everything got confusing." I rubbed my temples. "Flinn was older, successful, confident. Sebastian was still in school, still building his dreams. I thought I was choosing security."

"But you were really choosing a prison," Miranda said quietly.

The words hit hard because they were true.

"He wants to meet me," I said. "Tonight. In an hour."

"Are you going?"

I looked back at the building where my husband was probably laughing with his mistress. Where I'd spent three years pretending to be happy. Where I'd lost myself piece by piece.

"Yes," I said. "I'm going."

The coffee shop looked exactly like I remembered. Small tables. Soft lighting. The smell of fresh coffee and old books. My chest ached with memories.

Sebastian sat in our old corner, the same spot where we used to sit for hours. He looked up when I walked in, and my breath caught.

He wasn't the boy I remembered. He was a man now. Tall and strong, with sharp features and dark eyes that seemed to see right through me. His black suit probably cost more than my car.

But his smile was the same. Warm and a little sad.

"You came," he said softly.

"I shouldn't have." But I sat down anyway.

He pushed a cup toward me. "Vanilla latte. Extra foam. No sugar."

"You remember."

"I remember everything about you, Kelsey." His eyes held mine. "Every smile. Every laugh. Every tear I caused when you left."

Guilt twisted in my stomach. "I'm sorry. I was young and stupid and—"

"You were scared." He reached across the table, his fingers brushing mine. "Your parents had just died. You were alone. Flinn offered you stability. I understand why you chose him."

"Do you?" My voice cracked. "Because I don't. I don't understand how I could be so blind. How I could throw away something real for something fake."

"It wasn't fake in the beginning," Sebastian said. "He loved you once. I saw it. That's why I stayed away."

"But you're not staying away now."

His jaw tightened. "Because he doesn't deserve you anymore. Because I've waited long enough. Because I've built an empire, and now I'm going to use it to give you everything you should have had."

"I don't want your money, Sebastian."

"I'm not offering money." He leaned forward. "I'm offering revenge. I'm offering freedom. I'm offering the chance to make him pay for every tear, every lie, every moment he made you feel worthless."

My heart pounded. "What are you talking about?"

Sebastian pulled out a folder and slid it across the table. "Open it."

Inside were photos. Flinn and Victoria at a restaurant. Flinn and Victoria getting into a hotel. Flinn and Victoria kissing in an elevator. Dozens of photos spanning months.

"How long have you had these?" I whispered.

"Six months. I hired investigators the moment I heard rumors about his affair." His expression was cold. "I've been building a case against him. Financial records. Secret deals. Illegal contracts. Your husband isn't just a cheater, Kelsey. He's a criminal."

I stared at the papers, my mind spinning. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because I love you." The words were simple and devastating. "I never stopped loving you. And I'm going to help you take everything from him, the way he took everything from you."

"This is insane."

"Maybe." He stood up and moved to sit beside me. His hand cupped my face gently. "But tell me you don't want to make him hurt. Tell me you don't want him to feel the pain he caused you."

I couldn't. Because I did want that. I wanted Flinn to suffer. I wanted him to know what it felt like to lose everything.

"What do I have to do?" I asked.

Sebastian smiled. It wasn't a nice smile. "First, you stay married to him. You don't file for divorce. You don't confront him about Victoria. You play the perfect wife."

"Why?"

"Because we need time. Time to gather more evidence. Time to position ourselves. Time to make sure when we strike, he loses everything." His thumb brushed my cheek. "Can you do that? Can you pretend a little longer?"

I thought about Flinn's cold eyes. Victoria's poisonous smile. Three years of lies.

"Yes," I said. "I can do that."

"Good." Sebastian's hand dropped from my face. "We start tomorrow. I'll have my lawyer contact you with a secure phone. Use it to communicate with me. Trust no one else."

"What about Miranda?"

"Not even Miranda. The fewer people who know, the better." He stood up. "Go home, Kelsey. Act normal. And remember, you're not alone anymore."

I drove home in a daze. The house was dark when I arrived. Flinn wasn't home yet. Still with her, probably.

I walked through the empty rooms of our mansion. Everything was beautiful and cold. Like my marriage.

My phone buzzed. A text from Flinn.

"Staying at the office tonight. Don't wait up."

I typed back: "Okay. Love you."

The words made me sick. But Sebastian was right. I had to play the game.

Another text came. From Sebastian's number.

"Sweet dreams, princess. Tomorrow, we will begin your revenge."

I should have been scared. I should have questioned what I was doing.

Instead, I smiled.

But then I heard it. A sound from upstairs. Footsteps in our bedroom.

Someone was in the house.

My blood turned cold. I grabbed a vase from the hall table and crept toward the stairs.

The footsteps stopped. Then a voice called out.

"Hello, Kelsey. We need to talk."

It was Victoria.