Chapter 1

It was our ninth anniversary, the kind of party Victoria Sterling loved.

Our Hamptons estate buzzed with people I didn't know, or people who pretended not to know me.

Victoria stood by the grand fireplace, glowing.

Leo Maxwell, her personal assistant, barely out of his teens, was beside her, his hand on her slightly rounded stomach.

"My dear friends," Victoria announced, her voice carrying over the expensive chatter.

"Leo will be moving in with us."

A pause, for effect.

"And, we're expecting."

The room erupted in polite, manufactured applause.

My heart, already a weak, stressed muscle, hammered against my ribs.

I stood alone, near the overflowing champagne fountain.

Nine years. Nine years of this.

Victoria caught my eye, a smirk playing on her lips.

"Ethan, darling," she called out. "Leo needs something to feel more… settled. Part of the family."

Her gaze flickered to my wrist.

My father's vintage watch, the only thing of real value he'd ever owned.

"Give Leo your father's watch," she commanded.

Not asked. Commanded.

A memory surfaced, sharp and cold.

A ski trip in Colorado, years ago.

I' d bought a new snowboard. Leo, then just a new intern, wanted it.

I said no.

Victoria left me at the remote resort, took my wallet, my phone.

Took three days for me to get back.

Now, the watch.

I unclasped it.

Walked over to Leo.

His eyes gleamed with a nasty triumph.

I handed it to him.

"Thank you, Ethan," he said, his voice dripping with false sincerity.

He fumbled with it, "accidentally" letting it slip.

It hit the marble floor, the crystal shattering.

A collective gasp.

Leo looked horrified, then turned to Victoria, "Oh, Vicky, I'm so clumsy!"

Victoria' s face hardened as she looked at me.

"Ethan," she said, her voice like ice. "Look what you made him do. Apologize to Leo. Publicly."

The guests were silent, watching.

Some were betting, I heard later, on how long it would take me to crack or come crawling back if I ever left.

I bowed my head. "Leo, I am so sorry."

My voice was flat.

"I'm truly sorry for your distress."

Later that night, another memory.

Just weeks ago, a cardiac episode.

Crushing pain in my chest, couldn't breathe.

Victoria was packing for a trip with Leo.

She' d glanced at me, gasping on the floor.

"Don't be so dramatic, Ethan. I have a flight to catch."

She stepped over me and left.

Chloe, my childhood best friend, Dr. Chloe Davis, had talked me through it on a burner phone until the paramedics she called arrived.

Her voice, calm and strong, was the only reason I was still alive.

Our escape plan, years in the making, was almost ready.

Victoria found me in the study, staring at the broken watch pieces.

"Still moping, Ethan?" she asked, sipping her water.

"You're being manipulative. It's just a watch."

She didn't see the pain, or didn't care.