5

Chapter 5

Alyssa's Pov

Staring at the ring on my ring finger, I wondered why I'd acted that way; slipping it back on like a submissive wife and saying that I understood. And letting Nathaniel off the hook so easily.

How easily he slept and snored, as if we were right back to the way things used to be. As if my best friend wasn't pregnant with his child. As if he hadn't just replaced me. It hurt like hell, and sleep completely eluded me.

Wiping my tears, I did it methodically, as if I were scrubbing away every happy memory I'd shared with a best friend who hadn't hesitated to stab me in the back. To be honest, I didn't even know how to move forward. But I was Alyssa Marlowe, and if there was one thing I was good at, it was picking myself back up after taking a hit.

This one cut deep, but crying over a loss, over a man who betrayed me without a second thought, was a lost cause.

Leaning over his sleeping face, I pressed a brief kiss to Nathaniel’s forehead, pulled back the covers, and slipped out of bed.

I must have stood there for a full minute, staring at his peaceful features while feeling like an absolute idiot for still being in this room. Before the tears could spill over again, I walked out and made my way to the home office we shared.

Waking up the laptop with a touch, the clock on the screen stared back at me, as if forcing me to swallow my misery and grasp the full gravity of the situation.

My marriage had been invalid all these years. And my best friend was carrying his child.

One reality stuck out clearer than the rest: I no longer had a place in the Edelman family.

I picked up my phone from the desk. Even though the clock screamed past midnight, I dialed Priya. As it rang, I caught myself thinking, What are you doing? Are you insane? Just hang up and let it rest for tonight.

I had swallowed more than anyone should have to in a single evening. When Priya’s voice came through, gentle, soft, and sleepy, as if she hadn't just betrayed me, it sent a chill through me.

"Alyssa, hi. Is everything okay?"

I wanted to laugh. Is everything okay? Everything is wrong, Priya. You traitor. A best friend, no less. But I kept my mouth shut. Speaking recklessly or letting anger drive the wheel wouldn't get me anywhere.

They had played me for a fool. Now it was my turn to return the favor.

"I'm sorry, did I wake you?"

"Yeah, but… it's okay." She sighed, the sound of fabric rustling suggesting she was sitting up. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, really. I'm just... sorry for waking you."

"No, no, talk to me, Alyssa. What's going on?"

She was playing dumb. Hadn't she looked right at me at the party and smirked like she'd won? Tears clouded my view of the dimly lit office, and I struggled to comprehend how she could go to such lengths.

I saw you, Priya. Celebrating with my husband while I stood in the dark. Instead of calling her out, I sniffed quietly away from the receiver and forced a soft tone. "Congratulations on the pregnancy, Priya. I'm so happy for you."

"My pregnancy? How did you know about that?" Surprise leaked into her voice, a performance so seamless I could practically taste the deceit.

I felt like such a fool. How had I missed the snake shedding its skin right in front of me all this time? If Priya was this skilled at playing innocent, even after we'd locked eyes at that party I knew she recognized I was there, it explained why I had been blind to her lies for so long.

"Alyssa, who told you?" she pressed into the silence.

"Nathaniel did," I said, breaking from my thoughts.

I caught her faint intake of breath on the line.

"He said he ran into you at a celebration," I lied smoothly, my throat running dry from it. "Who's the lucky guy, Priya? How am I the last one to find out?"

What if I had imagined her seeing me? Either that, or she was an incredible actress.

"I didn't want to overwhelm you with the news tonight, Alyssa. It was your seventh anniversary with Nathaniel, and I didn't want to intrude. I only found out myself this morning."

My wedding anniversary with Nathaniel, the one you spent celebrating with him and his entire family.

I let out a breathless laugh, tears threatening to spill again. "But you're my best friend, Priya. We tell each other everything. You should have told me."

"I'm sorry," she sighed, the lingering falseness in her tone practically palpable. "I really am. From now on, whenever anything happens, you'll be my first call."

I swallowed the urge to break down at how effortlessly she pulled off the act, sickened that it was only now I was seeing through it.

"Let's celebrate tomorrow, Priya. What do you say?"

The pause on her end stretched long enough for me to hear her quiet breathing. "Definitely," she said finally. "I'll book us a table."

"Don't worry about it. Let me handle the reservation. My treat," I said with a faint chuckle. She offered a small laugh in return, followed by a soft, dramatic sigh a few seconds later.

"I'm really sorry you had to hear it from Nathaniel instead of me, Alyssa. I truly am."

"It's fine," I replied calmly. "Nathaniel is my husband. Whatever news reaches him comes to me eventually."

"Right." Her tone shifted slightly, as if she were parsing every layer of that sentence. Priya was sharp, so it wasn't surprising she'd pick up on the edge behind it.

My gut still told me, without a shadow of a doubt, that she had seen me at that party.

"Tomorrow then, Priya."

"Yeah," she sighed softly. "Goodnight, Alyssa."

"Goodnight."

I hung up and stared at the screen as the call ended, sinking deep into my thoughts, until the screen went dark.

How could I have built an entire life on strategy and sharp instincts, only to be played like a complete fool?