Memory Lane

Damon’s POV

~•~

I leaned back in my chair and, for the first time in days, I let myself breathe easier. Vivienne was now legally mine. The rest; the white dress wedding, the banquet, the photographs, that was only theater. The legality was what mattered, and I had it.

I looked at her hand earlier, the ring shining under the courthouse lights, and the thought stayed with me. I posted it with a line “She said yes.”

Within minutes, it spread with comments pouring in, the numbers jumping by the second. Some congratulated, but what made my jaw tighten was one word. One name.

Celeste.

Again and again, in the comments, her name appeared. I dropped the phone on the desk, the disgust twisting inside me. Even the glass wall of my office felt too close.

And like it always did, the past dragged me back.

It was my third year in business school. I could still see her face, the way she laughed at my bad jokes, the way she squeezed my hand like she believed in me.

But later, her words weren’t so sof