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Chapter 1

Audrey Westbrook

~•~

The music in the hall was overwhelming, so I stepped outside to get some air.

I lied.

It wasn’t about the music. I wanted to check my phone for what felt like the umpteenth time.

My birthday party was almost over, and my husband still hadn’t arrived.

And we were meant to have a couples dance soon.

Most of the guests were already asking about him. I had to come up with a silly excuse that he was stuck at work.

I wondered if any of them believed me. Everyone knew Vincent was the boss of his company. If he really wanted to leave work, nothing could stop him.

But they just nodded and talked about other things before I slipped out of their gathering.

I swallowed hard as I stared at my screen and saw that I still hadn’t gotten a response from him. I wasn’t even thrilled about the other birthday wishes I had gotten from my family and friends. Even strangers.

“Audrey…”

I jumped slightly, turning around to see my best friend standing behind me.

“Hey,” I muttered under my breath.

She stared at me for a long second before she continued. “You came here to hide away from the crowd?” Melanie laughed slightly, easing the tension.

Melanie already knew the reason why I was there but she didn’t want to make me feel more awkward.

I let out a wistful sigh. “He’s still not here,” I groaned, blinking back the tears that were threatening to fall from my face.

“I actually came here to show you something,” she said as she extended her phone to me.

I hesitated for a moment before I finally took it.

On the screen, I saw Vincent at a showroom, looking at cars in a row. I leaned closer, barely believing what I was seeing.

“Is that—“

“The car you’ve always wanted,” Melanie finished for me with a smile.

I stared at the black car in front of me. It was the exact model of the car I had been wanting to get. Vincent was probably tired of hearing me talk about it throughout the year.

I had always loved that car.

“He’s buying it for you, Audrey,” she said excitedly. “I’m sure that is what is keeping him late.”

That made sense.

A wave of relief washed over me. Of course, Vincent wouldn’t show up late on my birthday on purpose. He wouldn’t even dare miss my birthday party and embarrass me in front of our guests.

He knew how much my reputation mattered, and he would never humiliate me publicly.

"Let’s go back inside," I said, a smile breaking through the tension.

Melanie and I went back into the hall. My mood had improved drastically as I thought about my new car. I couldn’t stop smiling as I spoke with the other guests.

Out of excitement, I told them that my husband was late because he was getting me a new car.

The photo of Vincent at the dealership was also trending online, so everyone couldn’t stop talking about it.

After a while, I realized that the party was almost over and I still hadn’t seen any sign of Vincent on the premises.

“Maybe the transfer is taking time,” I muttered, trying to reassure myself. “He’ll be here.”

For the rest of the party, my eyes were glued to the entrance at intervals. I convinced myself that he was going to show up, but people had already started leaving and he was nowhere to be found.

I had to cancel the couple’s dance because I wasn’t looking to be humiliated further.

There was an excruciating pain in my chest, but I smiled at the guests as they bade me goodbye.

As much as I loved the new car, I still preferred that he hadn’t spent time at the dealership to get a new car. His presence was more important than any new car.

Soon enough, the hall had become empty. The only people left were my close friends and family.

Melanie joined me at the table.

“I’m sure there’s a good reason why he didn’t show up,” she said, comforting me.

She reached for my hand to give me a gentle squeeze but I slowly pulled away. No amount of comforting words or affection would make me feel better.

The only thing I wanted was for Vincent to walk through that door and apologize for everything with a reasonable explanation as to why he missed my birthday party.

“Do you know that he hadn’t even wished me a happy birthday?” I asked Melanie, my voice breaking.

When I woke up in the morning, I couldn’t find Vincent. I thought it was just some sort of prank for my birthday. But I looked everywhere until the security guards at the gate told me that he had already left for work.

Still, I convinced myself that he had a bigger surprise for me. The surprise turned out to be the car.

But I wasn’t happy that he missed my party without even bothering to text or call me to give me a heads-up.

Melanie and I sat there for a while.

She listened as I vented about everything until my driver finally came to pick me up.

When I got back home, I expected to see Vincent there, but his parking spot was empty.

My chest tightened even more.

If he wasn’t at home, where was he?

He still couldn’t be at the dealership anymore. It had been hours since that photo was posted.

I called him before walking into the house. As usual, the call went straight to voicemail.

I went to the living room and slumped on the couch. I didn’t want to go to the bedroom yet. I wanted to wait for my husband.

Rubbing my tired eyes, I reached for the television remote and turned it on. I just wanted to distract myself with the screen while I waited.

But turning on the television was the worst mistake ever. I shouldn’t have even stopped in the living room.