Chapter 4

Ethan slammed the phone down. I turned to look at Lily, who was watching me with a smug look, though she quickly masked it with tears.

"Chloe, Ethan and I really didn't do anything. Please don't fight because of me..."

"You heard what I told him," I cut her off. "Ethan and I are done. Since he brought you here, I won't kick you out in the middle of the night. But you both have twenty-four hours. Tomorrow, if your things are still here, don't blame me for what happens next."

I grabbed my suitcase and walked out. Out of sight, out of mind.

I stayed at a hotel that night. The next morning, as soon as I got to the office, my work bestie, Hailey, dragged me into the breakroom. "Hey! Weren't you supposed to be on a romantic road trip with Ethan? Why was he back at work early? And I saw your Instagram stories—he wasn't in any of them!"

I sighed and took a sip of my coffee. "We broke up."

"What?! Broke up?!" Hailey’s jaw dropped. She had witnessed our entire relationship.

I nodded, not wanting to get into the messy details.

She touched her chin thoughtfully. "Well, they do say a road trip is the ultimate test of a relationship. Note to self: always go on a road trip before getting serious with someone."

During lunch, Ethan walked over to my desk with a Starbucks cup, a practiced smile on his face. "Chloe, still mad at me?"

I looked at him, then at the coffee. "Take it away."

"Chloe, please—"

"I said, take it."

I looked him dead in the eye. "Ethan, I told you, we are broken up. The moment you drove off and left me at that highway rest stop, we were over. If you have any dignity left, pack your things and get out of my apartment."

Ethan's smile vanished. He grabbed the coffee cup and sneered, "Fine, Chloe. Have it your way. Just you wait."

When I went back to my apartment after work, I was surprised to find that the passcode had been changed back to my original one.

I walked in. The place had been cleaned, and all of Ethan and Lily’s belongings were gone.

At least they had enough brain cells to leave voluntarily. Saved me the trouble of calling the police.

I slumped on the couch for a bit to recharge, then went to inspect my master bedroom. Everything was back in its place. I walked over to the guest room to make sure Ethan hadn't left anything behind—I didn't want him using "forgotten keys" as an excuse to come back.

I pulled back the comforter on the guest bed. As I did, the pillow shifted slightly, revealing the corner of a familiar bright pink plastic wrapper.

I reached out and picked it up. A cold, cynical laugh escaped my throat.

*An empty condom wrapper.*

And they claimed they slept in separate rooms? "Clean and innocent," my ass. They didn't even bother to hide the evidence of their little "extracurricular activities."

Thank god I broke up with him, or my head would be practically glowing green with how hard he was cheating on me.