chapter 2

I spent the entire next day telling myself that I was being ridiculous.

Victoria had done nothing to me.

She hadn't insulted me. She hadn't threatened me. She hadn't even met me properly.

So why did I already dislike her?

I blamed it on the news of Daniel's wedding.

Maybe I wasn't jealous of Victoria.

Maybe I was simply afraid of losing my best friend.

That was what I kept telling myself.

By seven that evening, I was sitting in the back of my car, staring at Daniel's penthouse building and wondering why I had agreed to dinner in the first place.

I could have stayed home.

I should have stayed home.

But somehow, I was there.

My driver opened the door.

I stepped out and took a slow breath before walking toward the building.

I wore a simple black dress, nothing too revealing, with my hair tied neatly behind me. I wanted to look like myself.

Not like a woman trying to impress the woman who was about to marry my best friend.

When I entered the penthouse, Daniel was already waiting for me.

The moment he saw me, his face lit up.

“There she is.”

“Don't sound so surprised.”

“I thought you might cancel.”

“I considered it.”

He laughed.

And just like that, some of the tension inside me disappeared.

For a moment, everything felt normal.

Just me and Daniel.

The way it had always been.

Then a woman's voice came from behind him.

“Daniel?”

I turned.

Victoria walked into the room.

She was beautiful.

There was no denying it.

Long blonde hair, perfect makeup, and a fitted cream dress that probably cost more than most people's monthly salaries. She carried herself with the confidence of someone who had never been afraid of taking up space.

Her eyes settled on me.

Then she smiled.

“Claire.”

“Victoria.”

She walked toward me, and we shook hands.

Her fingers were cold.

“I've heard so much about you.”

I smiled politely.

“Hopefully nothing too embarrassing.”

She laughed, but her eyes stayed on me for a moment longer than necessary.

Daniel looked between us.

“I'll give you two some time. Dinner is almost ready.”

He disappeared toward the dining room.

The moment he was out of sight, Victoria's smile faded.

Not completely.

Just enough for me to notice.

“You and Daniel are very close,” she said.

“We've been friends for years.”

“I know.”

The way she said those two words made something inside me tighten.

“You're Ethan's mother too,” she added.

I nodded.

Her eyes narrowed slightly.

“Daniel told me Ethan will be staying with us after the wedding.”

“Yes.”

She took a slow breath.

“I hope you understand that things will have to change.”

I stared at her.

“What things?”

“Everything.”

She stepped closer.

“I'll be Daniel's wife. This will be my home. Ethan will be part of the family, of course, but there have to be boundaries.”

“Boundaries?”

“You can't simply come here whenever you want.”

For a second, I thought I had heard her wrong.

I almost laughed.

“This is Daniel's house.”

“Exactly.”

Her smile returned, but there was nothing warm about it.

“And soon, it will be my home too.”

Before I could respond, Daniel returned.

“Everything okay?”

Victoria's expression changed instantly.

The coldness disappeared.

She smiled brightly and slipped her arm through his.

“Of course.”

I looked at her.

It was almost impressive how quickly she could change.

I said nothing.

During dinner, Victoria was perfect.

Almost too perfect.

She laughed at Daniel's jokes. She asked about my business. She even asked about Ethan's favorite food.

Anyone watching us would have thought we were becoming one big happy family.

But I couldn't shake the feeling that I was sitting across from someone wearing a mask.

Then Ethan walked into the dining room.

He had been playing upstairs with his nanny.

The moment he saw Daniel, his face lit up.

“Daddy!”

Daniel immediately pushed his chair back.

“Come here, buddy.”

Ethan ran into his arms.

Daniel lifted him and kissed his cheek.

I smiled.

It was one of those moments that reminded me why Daniel had always been so important to me.

Then I looked at Victoria.

She was watching them.

Her smile disappeared.

Only for half a second.

But I saw it.

Ethan reached toward her.

“Vicky.”

She forced another smile.

“Hello, Ethan.”

He smiled innocently.

Then his eyes moved toward me.

“Mommy!”

Daniel laughed.

But Victoria didn't.

Her face changed again.

This time, she looked directly at me.

There was something in her eyes that I couldn't explain.

It wasn't simple jealousy.

It was colder than that.

Sharper.

Something I couldn't put a name to.

And for the first time that evening, I wondered if I had been right to be suspicious of her.

Later that night, when I was leaving, Daniel followed me to the elevator.

The doors were still open when he stopped beside me.

“You like her?”

He laughed.

“Is that an interrogation?”

“Answer me.”

“Yes.”

I looked away.

“She’s beautiful.”

“I didn't ask if she was beautiful.”

His smile disappeared.

For a moment, neither of us spoke.

Then he sighed.

“Claire, I need you to trust me.”

I looked at him.

“Why are you saying that?”

“Because things are going to change.”

“What things?”

He hesitated.

And that hesitation bothered me more than his words.

For the first time since I'd known him, Daniel looked like he was hiding something from me.

Then the elevator doors opened.

“I'll tell you eventually.”

“Eventually?”

He stepped back.

“Goodnight, Claire.”

The doors began to close.

I kept looking at him until he disappeared behind them.

For the first time in our entire friendship, Daniel had walked away from me while keeping a secret.

And somehow, I knew it wasn't a small one.

I just didn't know that the secret had everything to do with the woman he was about to marry.