Chapter 3

I turned off my phone and continued eating, stuffing my mouth with food and swallowing my tears right along with it. My stomach was full, but it felt like someone had punched a massive hole in my heart.

Teddy let out a couple of barks before lying quietly at my feet, silently keeping me company.

At 11:00 pm, Nathan came back with a container of food.

Teddy circled excitedly around his feet, only to be kicked aside. He whimpered before scurrying into my arms.

Cradling him protectively, I slowly shifted my gaze to the food container Nathan was holding.

"Is that your supper?"

Nathan set it down on the dining table.

"The food was pretty good, so I brought some back for you."

"I'm not hungry."

His brows drew together, and he spoke in a firm tone that left no room for questioning.

"I went out of my way to bring this back for you. At least eat some of it."

He was passing off his leftovers as something he'd bought specifically for me.

When I didn't answer, he walked over, snatched my phone out of my hand, and looked down at me.

"What on earth has gotten into you, Serena Jackson? If you've got a problem, just say it. I hate it when you act like this."

"Act like what?"

"You're just sitting there giving me a long face, acting as if I owe you something."

Did he think he didn't owe me anything?

But I didn't argue with him. Instead, I got up and opened the food container. It held a mix of shrimp scampi, crab cakes, and a lobster tail.

Pointing at the food, I kept my expression calm and asked, "So you specifically got this food for me, Nathan? I'm allergic to seafood. Have you forgotten that?"

He stiffened. "I didn't know what was in there. It was Zo—a friend who got it for me."

"Zoey, right?"

Nathan frowned. "You were tracking me?"

I held up my phone and opened my social media feed. It was filled with post after post of him and Fergus together.

"It's pretty much impossible for me not to know where you were," I commented.

Nathan gave me a long look before grabbing a bottle of liquor from the bar. He poured himself a glass and downed it in one go.

"It's your father's birthday, and you couldn't even be bothered to give him a call. Just because you're acting like some petulant child, does that mean I have to be as immature as you?" he said, his voice strained with exhaustion.

"If you'd just swallowed your pride and made peace with your father back then, I might not have had to spend ten years working my way up from nothing. I'm tired, Serena. I really am."

He was blaming me for that—for not enabling him to take the easy way to the top.

I walked into the bedroom and closed the door.

"I want to sleep alone tonight."

…

After the argument that ended unresolved, we started giving each other the silent treatment, and it was the most bitter cold war we've ever been locked in.

While he was at work, I continued packing my things. I gathered all of my kitchen supplies, including the premium ingredients I'd stashed over the years. I made sure not to leave behind any of the caviar, vanilla beans, and saffron that I'd slowly saved up money to buy, not even the bottle of aged balsamic vinegar that I'd cherished for close to ten years.

Not only did I hire a courier to ship off the pancetta I made that was finally ready to eat, but I even arranged a service to send Teddy to Logan ahead of time.

On Saturday, at 8:00 pm, Nathan had barely stepped through the front door when he gave me an order before he'd even set down his briefcase.

"Zoey invited my mom over for dinner tomorrow night. Both families will be there. You're coming too."

I stopped scrolling on my phone and asked, "Am I allowed to say no?"

He looked straight at me. "Serena, you should know what it means when both families get together for dinner. You're the one who wants this more than anyone, so don't play hard to get now."

What did it mean? An engagement? A wedding? And who was the bride supposed to be? Was it going to be Zoey or me?

But I didn't ask. I simply nodded and said, "Fine."

I only agreed because I wanted to see how far things had gone between Nathan and Zoey.

The next evening, by the time I arrived, everyone was already seated in the private dining room.

Zoey sat in the middle and was the center of attention. I had no idea what she'd said, but she'd had Nathan's mother, Mabel Tanner, laughing heartily.

When Mabel saw me, her smile faded, and she said curtly, "You're late."

Fergus, who had been absent from my life for over 20 years, finally tried to pull the weight of a father by slamming his glass down and snapping, "What took you so long? It's very rude of you to let your elders wait on you."

Before I could say anything, Zoey stepped over to me and smiled as she tried to smooth things over.

"It's not Serena's fault. If Nate hadn't come to pick me up, she wouldn't have been late."

I nodded. "That's right. It's your fault."