Chapter 4

I took the ring to the largest pawnshop in the city. The owner turned the blue diamond over in his hands, his eyes widening.

"Mr. Holt, this was a rare piece. When Ms. Laurent won it at auction, it made headlines. Were you sure you wanted to sell?"

"Sell it." I did not hesitate. "Outright. No buyback."

The owner clicked his tongue and named his price. "Three million dollars. That was the best I could do."

The ring had originally been worth 20,000,000 dollars. I did not have time to haggle. The funeral home was still waiting for payment.

"Fine. Transfer it."

Just as I was about to sign, a slender but firm hand pressed down on the pawn ticket. A familiar perfume hit me, suffocating in its intensity.

"Spencer, were you that desperate for money?"

My whole body went rigid. I raised my head slowly, and Simone stood behind me. I had not heard her come in.

She wore a tailored couture suit. Behind her stood Dylan with his arms crossed, watching with amusement, along with a handful of the socialites she usually kept company with. They looked at me with open mockery.

"Well, well. Was that the Holt heir? Reduced to selling his wedding ring?"

"Simone, were you squeezing him so hard he could not even afford to eat?"

Simone ignored them. She stared straight at me, fury churning behind her eyes.

"I offered you the black card and you turned it down. Now you were in a pawnshop making a fool of yourself with your wedding ring? Was this what you wanted? The whole city talking about how Simone Laurent mistreated her husband?"

She snatched up the ring and ran her thumb across the diamonds, her voice dripping with scorn. "Three million? Spencer, seven years together, and that was all it was worth to you?"

I looked at her and felt nothing but the absurdity of it all. If she truly cared about those seven years, she would not have brought another man home on our wedding night. She would not have stood by and done nothing while Dad was hounded by creditors.

"The ring was mine. I could do what I wanted with it."

I reached for it. "Give it back."

Simone lifted her hand out of reach without effort. She looked at the desperation on my face and laughed. It was a cruel, ugly sound.

"So you wanted money? Fine."

She pulled out a checkbook, scrawled a number across it, tore the check free, and threw it in my face. "Here were five million."

The thin slip of paper grazed my cheek and fluttered to the floor.

"Kneel." She pointed at the check on the ground as if she were training a dog.

"Get on your knees and pick it up, and the money was yours. The ring stayed with me."

Dylan leaned in close to her and put on his best wide-eyed look. "Simone, this ring was gorgeous. I wanted one too."

Simone glanced at him with indulgent affection. "You liked it? It was yours."

She took the ring, the one that had supposedly promised us forever, and slid it onto Dylan's middle finger. It fit perfectly.

"Thanks, Simone!" Dylan held up his hand, admiring the way the diamonds caught the light, and shot me a look that was pure provocation.

"Spencer, since you did not want it, I hoped you did not mind me keeping it."

I watched all of this and felt a fist close around my heart and squeeze until I could not breathe. I did not cry. I bent forward, dropped to my knees under the contemptuous stares of every person in the room, and picked up the check.

As long as Dad could be put to rest, nothing else mattered. What did dignity count for? What did pride count for?

When she saw me actually pick it up, the smile vanished from Simone's face. Something darker and more volatile took its place. She had probably expected me to tear the check to pieces and run, the way I always used to. She had miscalculated.

"Thank you, Ms. Laurent."

I folded the check, tucked it into my pocket, and turned to leave.

"Stop."

Simone grabbed my wrist and yanked me back, her nails digging into my skin hard enough to leave marks.

"Spencer, when did you sink this low? You would give up your wedding ring for money? Did you even have a heart?"

I raised my head and looked straight into her furious eyes. "Simone, you were the one who gave the ring away."

I let out a quiet laugh, my eyes dry and burning. "As for my heart, it died a long time ago."