Chapter 3 - He Believed Her
She called her attorney.
Then her accountant.
Then the bank.
Then the dealership.
Then the hotel.
Then she waited.
Ryan told her he had an investor dinner that Friday at the Grand Meridian Hotel.
“Don’t wait up,” he said, adjusting his cufflinks in the mirror.
Jade stood behind him in the bedroom.
“Will Vanessa be there?”
His hand froze for one second.
Then he smiled at the mirror.
“Who?”
Jade looked at his reflection.
“Your brand consultant.”
“She may stop by. It’s business.”
Jade nodded.
“Of course.”
Ryan turned, suspicious.
“Don’t do this tonight.”
“Do what?”
“Make your insecurity the center of my work.”
Jade smiled.
Not kindly.
“I wouldn’t dream of it.”
He believed her.
That was his second mistake.
The first was buying the car.
The third was parking it under the lights where everyone could see.
At 10:17 p.m., Jade arrived at the Grand Meridian in the rain.
She saw the red car immediately.
Vanessa stood beside it, laughing, one hand on the hood like she owned the night.
Ryan stood close to her.
Too close.
The valet held an umbrella.
The hotel entrance glowed behind them.
Jade sat in the back of her town car for thirty seconds, watching her husband tuck a strand of blonde hair behind another woman’s ear.
Then she got out.
The golf club had been in the trunk since last summer, when Ryan mocked her swing at a charity tournament and told everyone, “Jade is better with numbers than coordination.”
He was right about one thing.
She was very good with numbers.
She knew exactly how much that windshield cost.
She knew exactly how much the insurance deductible was.
She knew exactly whose name was on the policy.
And she knew the clause that denied claims arising from intentional damage by the insured owner.
That was fine.
She did not want the company to pay.
She wanted Ryan to understand that if he used her money to decorate his affair, she could use her own hand to end the illusion.
The windshield shattered beautifully.
Almost politely.
One strike.
No person touched.
No second hit.
The car was damaged.
The marriage was named.
And everyone saw the difference.
Inside the hotel lobby, Ryan caught up to her near the marble staircase.
“Jade.”
She kept walking.
He grabbed for her arm, then stopped when he saw the security cameras.
Good.
He could still learn under surveillance.
“You just committed vandalism,” he hissed.
She turned.
“Against my own property.”
Vanessa rushed in behind him, shaking with rage and fear.
“You ruined my car.”
Jade looked at her.
“No. I ruined my car.”
Vanessa’s face flushed.
Ryan stepped between them.
“Enough. Jade, you’re going to pay for this.”
Jade laughed once.
May you like
The sound surprised all three of them.
“I already did.”
