Chapter 1

Owen James's grandmother wanted to pass the James family heirloom jade necklace to me.

Just as I reached out to take it, Owen suddenly stretched out his hand and stopped me.

"Grandmother, let me give it to Teresa. She's only just come into the family. She needs to save face."

The Teresa he kept saying so fondly was his assistant, Teresa Fox.

Genevieve James's whole face went white with anger.

I only smiled and drew my hand back.

"Grandmother, Owen is right."

That same night, I accepted the date invitation from the finance mogul who'd been chasing me for over half a year.

Over the candlelit dinner, I posted to my social media feed. The picture was of the black card the man had handed me.

Owen's call came three seconds later, his voice tight.

"Where are you? Who are you with?"

I gently swirled the wine in my glass.

"Aren't you busy helping Teresa pick out a necklace?"

He was silent for a few seconds, then suddenly laughed.

"You're jealous."

"Not at all."

I looked at the man across from me. He was mouthing a question at me. May I kiss you?

I nodded at him and spoke into the phone, careless.

"Since you're making her promises, I should go find myself a future that isn't quite so pathetic."

Owen's laughter cut off in an instant.

...

The other end of the line went dead silent.

I could picture Owen's face perfectly right now. First the shock, then the fury.

He'd controlled me for seven years. Hadn't he never once slipped?

The man across from me, Abner Henson, saw me nod, and a smile spread in his eyes.

He leaned in, his breath brushing my cheek.

I didn't pull away.

On the phone, Owen's breathing turned suddenly heavy.

"Eudora Pruitt, stop this."

His voice was forced out through his teeth, edged with command.

I took the phone away from my ear and pressed end.

I turned the phone face-down on the tablecloth, shutting his world out completely.

"Sorry. Just an unimportant call."

I smiled at Abner.

In the end Abner's kiss never landed. He only stopped a few centimeters from me.

"It's all right. I can wait."

He sat back in his seat and pushed a plate of shelled crab meat over in front of me.

"Eat something first."

His thoughtfulness was pitched just right, without a trace of pressure.

The feeling was nothing at all like the way Owen and I usually were together.

Owen liked to control everything, including what I wore, ate, where I lived, how I lived, my every joy and sorrow.

He liked watching me get jealous over him, get anxious over him. It fed his sick sense of possession.

Owen and I had been together for seven years.

From school uniforms to suits, from raw and young to grown.

I'd always assumed we'd carry on naturally into marriage.

Until today.

At the old James estate, in the living room, Genevieve held my hand and, with a trembling hand, lifted a jade necklace out of a box.

"Dora, this has been passed down through the James wives for generations. Today I'm officially giving it to you."

Her eyes were full of tenderness.

I was moved, and I reached out to take it.

But Owen suddenly reached over and pressed down on his grandmother's hand.

"Grandmother, this necklace. Give it to Teresa."

The living room went silent at once.

The smile froze on my face.

He didn't even glance at me. His gaze fell on Teresa, who stood off to the side looking awkward.

"Teresa's only just come into our family, and it's her first time meeting the relatives. She needs to save face."

Teresa was his assistant. She'd started three months ago.

An assistant paying her first visit to his family needed a James heirloom to prop up her standing?

It was the most absurd joke I'd ever heard.

Genevieve's whole face went white with anger. The finger she pointed at Owen was shaking.

"You worthless thing! Do you have any idea what you're saying!"

But Owen looked at his grandmother, stubborn, not giving an inch.

Slowly, I drew back the hand hanging in midair, and I stood up.

I walked over to Owen's side and put the smile back on my face.

"Grandmother, Owen is right. Teresa's a guest. We can't treat her poorly."

My compliance loosened the tight line of Owen's jaw.

He looked at me, approval in his eyes.

I avoided his gaze.

That night, I didn't stay for dinner at the old James estate.

I'd said yes to Abner's date.

Abner Henson. The finance mogul who'd been chasing me for over half a year. Handsome, wealthy, and most important of all, when he looked at me, there was light in his eyes.

Now Owen was calling again.

I let it buzz on the table and ignored it.

Abner didn't ask either. He just kept me quiet company through the meal.

When dinner was over, he walked me to the door of my building.

"Aren't you going to invite me up?"

He leaned against the car door, smiling.

My apartment was one Owen had bought.

We'd been living together for five years.

"Another time. It's too late tonight."

I turned him down.

Abner didn't press. He only said, all right, get some rest, then.

He watched me walk into the building before he drove off.

I got home. Owen's slippers were still sitting in the entryway.

The living room light was off, everything pitch black.

I'd just changed out of my shoes when a figure lunged at me out of the dark and pinned me hard against the door.

The strong smell of alcohol mixed with the familiar cedar scent on him, and it wrapped around me all at once.

"Eudora, have you had enough of this?"

Owen's voice was cold and hard, and the hand gripping my shoulder was crushing.