Chapter 3

The Anniversary He Forgot

People always spoke about heartbreak as if it arrived suddenly.

Like storms.

Like car crashes.

Like dramatic endings.

Elena had once believed that too.

Standing near the edge of the ballroom, she understood how wrong she had been.

Heartbreak could happen quietly.

Sometimes it looked like watching your husband smile at another woman.

And sometimes, it looked like realizing he had not looked for you once that evening.

Across the ballroom, Adrian stood surrounded by investors and executives.

He belonged there effortlessly.

Conversations gathered around him. People leaned closer when he spoke. Heads turned whenever he crossed the room.

Power had always followed Adrian Laurent.

So had attention.

Claire Holloway stood beside him, listening to one of the international investors explain something about the London partnership.

Elena watched her laugh softly.

Then Adrian smiled.

Not fully.

Not warmly.

But enough.

Enough to remind Elena that once, years ago, he had smiled like that around her.

Before marriage became routine.

Before she became so accustomed to his absence that she sometimes forgot what his attention had felt like.

A photographer approached before she could look away.

“Mrs. Laurent.”

Elena turned.

The photographer lifted his camera.

“Could I get a picture of you and your husband together?”

She glanced across the ballroom.

Adrian hadn't even noticed them.

“He's occupied at the moment,” she said with a polite smile. “Perhaps later.”

“Of course.”

The photographer moved away.

Elena kept smiling until he disappeared into the crowd.

No one had told Adrian what day it was.

No one needed to.

A wife was supposed to remind her husband of things like that.

At least, that was what Elena had spent years telling herself.

“You okay?”

She turned.

Daniel Reed appeared beside her, holding a champagne glass.

He offered it to her.

“I thought you might want one.”

A faint smile touched her lips.

“Thank you.”

She accepted it.

Daniel looked at the glass.

Then at her.

“You haven't taken a sip.”

“I will.”

“You've been saying that for the last ten minutes.”

Elena glanced at him.

“Were you watching me?”

“I notice people.”

“That sounds dangerous.”

“It can be.”

A small laugh escaped her.

It surprised her how easily Daniel could still make that happen.

He studied her for another moment.

“You've been watching Adrian all night.”

Her smile faded slightly.

“Have I?”

“Since you arrived.”

Elena looked toward the ballroom.

Adrian was still talking to the investors.

Claire was beside him.

Nothing about the scene looked wrong.

That was almost worse.

“It's a busy night,” Elena said.

Daniel followed her gaze.

“It is.”

He waited.

She knew he was waiting for more.

She gave him nothing.

“You don't have to tell me,” he said eventually.

Elena looked at him.

“Thank you.”

“But you should know something.”

“What?”

“The press notices when you're standing alone.”

Her eyes moved toward the photographers scattered around the room.

Right.

Appearances.

Especially for men like Adrian Laurent.

“I'll survive,” she said.

“I know.”

There was something about the way he said it that made her pause.

Not pity.

Something closer to understanding.

Daniel glanced toward Adrian again.

Then back at her.

“You know, most people here would kill for your life.”

Elena looked around.

Crystal chandeliers.

Champagne towers.

Expensive gowns.

Perfect smiles.

Men shaking hands as though every friendship in the room came with a contract.

“Most people only see the money,” she said.

Daniel's expression changed slightly.

“You're right.”

She looked at him.

He didn't elaborate.

A guest called his name from across the ballroom.

Daniel sighed.

“I should go before they accuse me of abandoning my responsibilities.”

Elena smiled.

“Wouldn't want that.”

He took a step away, then stopped.

“Take care of yourself tonight.”

She nodded.

“I will.”

Daniel disappeared into the crowd.

Elena watched him go.

Then she looked back toward Adrian.

Still nothing.

Still no glance in her direction.

She lowered her eyes to the champagne glass in her hand.

She hadn't touched it.

She set it on a passing tray instead.

Then she walked toward the balcony.

Cold air greeted her the moment she stepped outside.

The ballroom doors closed behind her, muting the music and laughter.

For the first time that evening, nobody was looking at her.

Elena rested both hands against the marble railing.

Below, the city stretched endlessly beneath the wet night, headlights moving along the streets in thin rivers of gold.

She breathed slowly.

In.

Out.

The silence felt different here.

It asked nothing from her.

She closed her eyes.

She remembered her wedding day.

Not the flowers.

Not the photographs.

Adrian.

He had looked at her differently then.

Not openly romantic.

He had never been that kind of man.

But attentive.

He noticed things.

He noticed when she was nervous.

He noticed when she was cold.

He noticed when she stopped talking.

For a long time, Elena had believed noticing was enough.

Maybe that was why she had stayed patient for so long.

Her gaze drifted toward the city.

A thought surfaced unexpectedly.

The envelope in Adrian's study.

The law firm's return address.

She still hadn't asked him about it.

For a moment, curiosity tightened her chest.

Then she pushed it away.

Tonight already hurt enough.

A soft sound behind her interrupted the thought.

“Elena.”

She knew the voice immediately.

She turned.

Adrian stood near the doorway, one hand resting loosely against the frame.

The city lights caught the side of his face.

Even after seven years, there were moments when looking at him still felt unfair.

“People are asking for you inside,” he said.

Elena looked back toward the skyline.

“I needed air.”

“You disappeared.”

A faint smile touched her lips.

“You seemed busy.”

His expression remained calm.

“Claire just returned after years overseas. The investors wanted introductions.”

“Business.”

“It was.”

Elena nodded.

“I understand.”

The strange thing was, she really did understand.

That had always been the problem.

She understood his meetings.

His deadlines.

His responsibilities.

His exhaustion.

She understood everything.

Somewhere along the way, she had stopped asking whether he understood her.

“Are you upset with me?” he asked.

The question made her pause.

It should not have felt so unusual.

But it did.

Elena turned fully toward him.

Tonight, under the city lights, Adrian looked exactly as the world expected him to look.

Composed.

Successful.

Untouchable.

She had once believed being loved by him would make her feel safe.

Instead, she had spent years learning how to survive being overlooked by him.

“Today is our anniversary,” she said.

Adrian went still.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Elena watched his face.

The recognition came slowly.

Then the regret.

“Elena.”

She looked away.

“It's okay.”

“No.”

His answer was quiet.

“It isn't.”

She hadn't expected that.

Adrian looked toward the city.

“I had meetings all week.”

Elena nodded.

“I know.”

“I've been dealing with the partnership.”

“I know.”

He looked back at her.

Then came the sentence she had feared without realizing it.

“You should've reminded me.”

The words were simple.

Almost practical.

But they landed harder than an apology would have.

Elena stared at him.

For years, she had reminded him.

Birthdays.

Family dinners.

Appointments.

Vacations.

Anniversaries.

She had remembered the small things because remembering had become part of loving him.

But she had never imagined she would have to remind him to remember her.

“I wasn't asking for anything big,” she said.

Adrian remained silent.

“I just wanted you to remember.”

Something changed in his expression.

“I forgot.”

“Yes.”

He looked genuinely uncomfortable now.

Elena almost wished he would become angry.

Anger would have been easier.

Instead, he looked at her as though he had finally realized there was something he could not solve with a meeting or a decision.

“I should have remembered,” he said.

Elena looked down.

“Yes.”

The silence between them lasted several seconds.

Then Adrian spoke again.

“I'm sorry.”

She believed he meant it.

Elena drew a slow breath.

“I know you're busy.”

Adrian's eyes narrowed slightly.

“There you go again.”

“What?”

“Making it easier for me.”

She looked at him.

For a moment, she didn't know what to say.

Then she answered honestly.

“I don't know how to make it difficult anymore.”

Adrian said nothing.

Inside the ballroom, applause broke through the glass doors.

Someone was speaking into a microphone.

The evening continued without waiting for either of them.

Adrian glanced toward the doors.

Then back at Elena.

“We should go inside.”

She nodded.

“Okay.”

He stepped closer.

His hand reached for hers.

Elena looked down at their joined hands.

Once, that small gesture would have been enough to calm everything inside her.

Tonight, it wasn't.

She didn't pull away.

But she didn't hold tighter either.

Adrian noticed.

His fingers loosened slightly.

Neither of them spoke as they walked toward the doors.

Just before they reached them, Elena looked back once at the city.

Seven years ago, she had thought love meant learning another person completely.

Tonight, she wondered whether she had spent so much time learning Adrian that she had forgotten to remain Elena.

She turned away from the skyline.

And followed her husband back into the ballroom.

For the first time, Elena wasn't sure she would remind him again.