Chapter 3

On the morning of our honeymoon, my bags were packed and I was ready to leave anytime.

I had just gotten my offer letter from the investment bank. My plan was to let this trip to the Maldives be the last stop of our eight years together.

But right before we walked out the door, Curt's phone started ringing frantically.

He answered, and a coworker's panicked shout came through:

"Mr. Sanchez! Amy lost the Morningstar Group contract! She's up on the roof right now, crying, saying she's going to jump!"

Curt went white in the face. Without a second's hesitation, he dropped his suitcase and moved to bolt for the door.

I stepped in front of him and blocked the entryway.

"Curt, today is the first day of our honeymoon. I booked the flights and the hotel six months ago. If you walk out that door today, we're finished. Completely."

Curt lost it and shoved me hard, out of his way.

The force sent me slamming into the sharp corner of the shoe cabinet, and the pain left me bent over, unable to straighten up.

"Nadia, that's a human life! When did you get so cold and selfish?"

He roared at me.

"The Maldives will always be there! You don't work a day, all you think about is having fun. Can't you show a little sense for once?"

The security door slammed shut behind him.

I rubbed my bruised arm and looked around at the red wedding decorations covering the apartment, and I didn't shed a single tear.

I wanted to see for myself just how big a contract could push an intern to jump off a roof. I took a cab and followed him to the office.

But when I got up to the roof, there was no one there.

I went back down to the work floor. It was quiet and empty, and only the break room door stood half open.

Inside there was no panic of someone about to jump. There was a warm, clinging intimacy instead.

Amy, in a delicate spaghetti-strap sundress, stood with her eyes red, leaning close against Curt's chest.

"Curt, is Nadia angry with me? Maybe you should still go on your honeymoon with her. I'm the one who lost the contract. If it comes to it, I'll pay for it with my life. I can carry this on my own..."

Curt's heart ached for her. He pulled her tight against him, patting her back with a gentle hand.

"Don't say foolish things. She's never wanted for anything. She's just a spoiled little princess I've indulged, thinks about nothing but having fun all day. She has no idea how hard people like you work."

"She's nothing compared to you. There, don't cry."

Then the phone in my bag buzzed once.

I opened it. A refund notice from the airline:

【Ms. Nadia Quinn, your booked flight from New York to the Maldives has been successfully refunded. The refund has been returned to the original payment method.】

Before I could even wonder about it, I heard Curt's tender voice from inside the break room:

"Don't cry. I already refunded Nadia's ticket and rebooked it under your name."

"We'll fly out tonight. I'll take you to the coast to clear your head. I'll handle the contract. You matter most."

Amy laughed through her tears and looped her arms around his neck, her voice sweet and coaxing:

"Curt, you're so good to me."

I held my phone, looking at the refund notice on the screen, then at the man and woman wrapped up in each other inside.

In that moment my chest didn't even hurt. There was only a bleak emptiness left.

What Curt had canceled was not just a plane ticket. It was the last chance for the eight years we'd spent together.

I raised my phone and aimed the lens at the gap in the break room door.

And I recorded every frame of the two of them holding each other close.

When the recording ended, I saved it.

Then I turned around, expressionless, and walked out of the company without a shred of reluctance.

Since the two of you are so in love, then I wish you a long and happy life together.