Chapter 1

On my 30th birthday, I stood in the grand hall of the Boston Architectural Awards gala. Ethan had promised me this night. He said it would be a joint celebration, for my birthday and for his big project win. I believed him. For twelve years, I had believed him.

The room was filled with Boston' s elite, the kind of people I once feared, the kind of people Ethan, with his old-money family, had supposedly protected me from in college. Now, I just felt cold.

I found my name. It wasn't at a table of honor. It was on a flimsy banner, taped to a side wall. "Happy B-Day, Chloe!" it read in cheap, printed letters. Below it, on a small, lonely table, sat a single cupcake with a wilting candle.

The main stage was lit up. A massive screen projected a smiling photo of Ethan, arm in arm with his intern, Madison. The announcer' s voice boomed, "A special tribute to Ethan Hayes and his brilliant protégé, Madison Clark!"

My friends saw it. They saw the sad cupcake and the pathetic banner. They saw the tribute to another woman on the night that was supposed to be mine. Their faces were tight with pity.

Ethan finally noticed me. He strode over, a glass of champagne in his hand, his smile wide and unconcerned.

"There you are," he said. "Big night, huh?"

He gestured vaguely toward the cupcake. "Madison arranged that. Sweet, right?"

Madison, who always played the part of a clumsy, adorkable girl, came up behind him. She gave me a hug that felt like a trap.

"Chloe, happy birthday! I am so, so sorry this all overshadowed your day. Ethan is just so amazing, we all got carried away."

Her eyes were not sorry at all.

Later, my friends gathered around my little table. They tried to sing "Happy Birthday." I closed my eyes, looked at the sad little flame on the cupcake, and made my wish out loud.

"I wish to never have anything to do with Ethan again."

The silence was heavy. Ethan, who had wandered back over with his powerful friends, let out a short, ugly laugh.

"She gets dramatic when she drinks," he told them, loud enough for everyone to hear. He looked right at me, his eyes full of arrogant certainty.

"Give her a week. She' ll come crawling back."

He winked. He had no idea. He didn't know that two days ago, I had accepted a promotion. I was now the Program Director for my non-profit's new international branch.

In London.

I smiled back at him, a real smile this time. It was the first one in a long time.