Chapter 2

The next day, Ava' s agent, Sarah, called.

"Ava, what did you do? I just got a call from Jake Miller's office. They said you turned down 'City of Echoes'. Are you insane? This is the role of a lifetime!"

Ava was sitting on her couch, staring at the wall. She hadn't slept.

"I'm not doing it, Sarah."

"Why? Did you and Jake have a fight? Ava, you can't let a personal squabble ruin your career. You know how this town works. You need him."

"No, I don't," Ava said, her voice flat. "It's over."

There was a long silence on the other end of the line. "What do you mean, it's over?"

"We broke up."

"Okay," Sarah said slowly, pragmatically. "Okay, we can work with this. But turning down the role is a mistake. It makes you look difficult. Ungrateful."

"I don't care how it looks," Ava said. "I'm not taking a consolation prize from him."

Before Sarah could argue further, Ava heard a knock at her door. "I have to go."

She hung up and went to the door. It was a courier with a package. It was from Jake's company. She almost refused it, but the courier insisted.

Inside was a velvet box. Ava opened it. It was a bracelet, a unique design of intertwining gold and silver bands, dotted with tiny diamonds. She recognized it immediately. She had sent a picture of it to her friend weeks ago, saying it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. She had secretly hoped Jake might see it, that he might get it for her for their anniversary.

Now, it felt like an insult. A trinket to smooth things over.

Her phone buzzed again. A news alert from a popular gossip site. The headline read: CEO Jake Miller and Heiress Chloe Peterson: A Match Made in Heaven?

Below it was a picture of Jake and Chloe at a charity gala last week. They were smiling, looking very much like a couple. And on Chloe's wrist was the exact same bracelet. Not a similar one. The exact one. It was a one-of-a-kind piece.

Ava felt sick. He had given her rival the gift that was meant for her. Or maybe, it was never meant for her at all.

She forced herself to go to a pre-scheduled costume fitting for a small TV role she had booked before everything fell apart. She needed to work. She needed to pretend her life wasn't a complete ruin.

As she walked into the studio, she almost collided with a woman coming out. It was Chloe Peterson.

Chloe looked her up and down, a smug smile on her perfectly made-up face. "Ava Green. I've heard so much about you."

Ava said nothing. She just wanted to get past her.

But Chloe wasn't finished. She held up her wrist, letting the bracelet catch the light. "Beautiful, isn't it? Jake gave it to me. He said it reminded him of me. Unique and priceless."

Chloe leaned in closer, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "He told me all about his little hobbies. You were one of them, weren't you? It must be hard, knowing you were just a distraction until the real thing came along."

Ava stared at her, her hands clenched into fists at her sides.

"My boyfriend is a very generous man," Chloe continued, her smile widening. "But he knows the difference between a toy and a treasure."

Ava finally found her voice. "Get out of my way."

Chloe just laughed, a high, tinkling sound that grated on Ava's nerves. "Of course. I have a lunch date. With Jake."

She swept past Ava, her expensive perfume lingering in the air like a poison. Ava stood frozen, the public humiliation washing over her. The other people in the hallway were staring, whispering. For three years, Jake had insisted they keep their relationship private. He said it was to protect her from the media, to let her build her career on her own merits. Now she understood the real reason. He was ashamed of her. And he was keeping his options open.

She tried to call him, needing to hear him deny it, to say something, anything. The call went straight to voicemail. His inbox was full. He had already cut her off completely.