Chapter 4

I stepped back, putting distance between us.

"We're already broken up, Cliff."

"I never agreed to that!" he shouted.

"A breakup isn't something you decide on your own!"

He came forward, reaching to grab my hand.

I knocked his arm away hard.

"You're drunk. Please leave."

"I'm not leaving!" He turned shameless. "Not unless you come home with me."

"This is my home," I said. "And you're nothing to me anymore."

"Amanda!" My words set him off. He seized my shoulders and shook me hard.

"Do you have to be this heartless? Five years, and you just throw it away like it's nothing?"

His grip was strong, and it dug painfully into my shoulders.

I struggled, but I couldn't push him off at all.

"Let go!"

"Come back with me! I won't let go!"

While we were still grappling, my phone rang.

It was Reuben.

I lunged for it, but Cliff snatched the phone away first.

When he saw Lawyer Gilbert on the screen, his face twisted in an instant.

"Found a new one already? That fast? Lawyer Gilbert?"

Sneering, he hit answer and put it on speaker, right in front of me.

"Miss Fox, it's me." Reuben's clear, even voice came through the speaker.

Cliff cut in first, his tone all provocation.

"She doesn't have time for your call."

There were a few seconds of silence on the other end.

"Is this Mr. Dickerson?"

"That's right, I'm her boyfriend!" Cliff announced, like he was staking a claim.

"Oh?" Nothing in Reuben's tone gave anything away. "As far as I know, Miss Fox already ended things with you."

"What you're doing right now already counts as trespassing and harassment."

"If Miss Fox wants it, I can call the police immediately."

Cliff's expression shifted.

He clearly hadn't expected this lawyer to be so hard to push around.

"We don't need some outsider butting in. This is between the two of us!"

"A couple?" Reuben let out a soft laugh. "I think you've got it wrong, Mr. Dickerson."

"Miss Fox is my client now. Her business is my business."

"I'll give you three minutes to leave. If you don't, you'll answer for whatever happens."

Reuben's tone wasn't loud, but it carried a pressure that left no room for argument.

Cliff gripped the phone, the veins standing out on the back of his hand.

He stared at me, hard.

I met his eyes without a flicker of fear.

The standoff lasted about a minute before Cliff finally caved.

He hurled the phone to the floor, and the screen shattered on impact.

"Fine, Amanda!"

"You just wait!"

He spat out the threat, turned, and slammed the door on his way out.

The crash of it left my ears ringing.

My legs gave out, and I sank to the floor.

It was a long time before I found my strength again.

I picked up the broken phone from the floor. It wouldn't turn on anymore.

Tomorrow, one more thing to deal with.

The next day I went to work with dark circles under both eyes.

The moment I walked into the office, something felt off.

The way my coworkers looked at me carried a mix of curiosity and pity.

My direct supervisor called me into his office.

"What's really going on with you and Cliff, Amanda?"

My stomach dropped.

"He came to see you?"

He nodded, his face grim.

"He showed up first thing this morning and made a scene in the lobby. Said you're a gold-digger, that you dumped him to latch on to someone richer."

"Said you threw him out of the house for another man…"

"The whole company's talking about it now."

My head buzzed.

I hadn't imagined Cliff would sink this low.

Ruining my reputation just to force me back together with him.

"It isn't the way he's telling it, sir." I drew a deep breath, forcing myself calm.

"I know," my supervisor sighed. "I haven't known you a day or two. I know what kind of person you are."

"But there's too much gossip going around the office right now. It's not good for you."

"How about you take a few days off, let this blow over?"

I understood. This was him trying to protect me.

But why should I be the one to hide?

I wasn't the one who did anything wrong.

"I won't take the time off. Thank you, sir."

"Let them say whatever they want. I've got nothing to hide."

When I came out of his office, I ran straight into a few of the women who loved to gossip.

The moment they saw me, they crowded around.

"We heard you dumped Cliff, Amanda. How could you let go of a guy that good?"

"Yeah, and I heard you two were about to buy a place. Such a shame."

"So the new one you found's got money, huh? A lawyer?"

They talked over each other, every line barbed.

I didn't bother with any of it and walked right through the middle of them.

"Please. What's so great about it? She just landed herself a richer catch."

"Let's see how long she stays smug."

The whispers behind me set my nerves on edge.

I clenched my fists, nails digging deep into my palms.

All day I felt it like thorns against my back.

Wherever I went, I could feel the strange looks following me.