Chapter One — The Woman Who Knew My Husband Too Well
The first time Ava told me she was going to marry my husband, I laughed.
I actually laughed.
Not because I thought it was funny.
Because sometimes, when someone says something so outrageous that your mind refuses to accept it, laughter is the only response your body can find.
We were standing outside a little coffee shop downtown. I had stopped there after work because my husband, Daniel, had texted me that he was running late.
Don't wait for me for dinner. Something came up at the office. Love you.
Those words had become ordinary.
Too ordinary.
Daniel had been working late more often lately. Meetings. Clients. Deadlines. Business dinners. Conference calls that somehow always happened after nine at night.
I had never questioned him.
Not seriously.
We had been married for six years, and I trusted him.
At least, I thought I did.
Then Ava appeared.
She was sitting at the table beside mine, wearing a cream-colored dress that looked expensive enough to cost more than my monthly grocery bill. Her dark hair fell over one shoulder, and she had the kind of confidence that made people look twice when she walked into a room.
I recognized her immediately.
Daniel's assistant.
Ava Morgan.
I had met her twice.
Both times, she had smiled at me as though we shared a secret.
I just hadn't known what it was.
She stood when she noticed me.
"Claire."
I frowned.
"Hi, Ava."
She smiled.
"You're alone?"
I glanced at the empty chair across from me.
"Obviously."
She laughed softly.
"I meant Daniel."
I felt something strange in my stomach.
"He had to work."
"Of course he did."
The way she said it made me look at her.
"What does that mean?"
"Nothing."
She picked up her handbag.
Then she leaned toward me.
"I'm going to marry your husband."
For three seconds, I couldn't move.
Then I laughed.
"Okay."
She didn't laugh with me.
That was when the feeling in my stomach changed.
"Ava, that's not funny."
"I'm not joking."
I stared at her.
"You've lost your mind."
"Maybe."
She stepped closer.
"But I'm telling you now because I don't want you to say later that I didn't warn you."
I shook my head.
"Daniel is my husband."
"I know."
"We've been married for six years."
"I know that too."
"Then why would you say something like this?"
Her expression softened.
Almost pitying.
"Because you still think you're the only woman in his life."
My heart skipped.
I forced myself to smile.
"You work for him."
"I do."
"You're his assistant."
"I am."
"So perhaps you should remember your position."
Her smile disappeared.
"You really don't know, do you?"
"Know what?"
She looked toward the door.
Then back at me.
"Ask Daniel where he was last Thursday."
My blood went cold.
"What happened last Thursday?"
"Ask him."
"Ava."
She picked up her bag.
"I'm sorry, Claire."
"For what?"
She walked past me.
Then stopped.
Without turning around, she said quietly,
"Because by the time you finally believe me, it might be too late."
Then she left.
I sat there for several minutes.
I told myself she was jealous.
Maybe she wanted Daniel.
Maybe she had some ridiculous fantasy about him.
Maybe she was trying to destroy our marriage.
I repeated those explanations all the way home.
By the time I reached our house, I had convinced myself that I was being ridiculous.
Daniel loved me.
He had chosen me.
He had married me.
We had built a life together.
Ava was nothing.
At least, that's what I told myself.
Daniel came home at 10:47.
I was sitting on the couch pretending to watch television.
He walked in, loosened his tie and smiled.
"Hey, beautiful."
I smiled back.
"Long day?"
"The longest."
He kissed my forehead.
I watched him walk toward the kitchen.
"Daniel?"
He stopped.
"Yeah?"
"Where were you last Thursday?"
He turned around.
And for just one second, something flashed across his face.
Fear.
It disappeared so quickly that I almost convinced myself I had imagined it.
"Last Thursday?"
"Yes."
He laughed.
"I don't remember."
"Try."
He opened the refrigerator.
"Probably at the office."
"Probably?"
He looked at me.
"Claire, it was almost a week ago."
"Did you go anywhere after work?"
"No."
The answer came too quickly.
I stared at him.
He closed the refrigerator.
"Why?"
"No reason."
He smiled.
"Okay."
Then his phone rang.
He pulled it from his pocket.
I couldn't see the screen.
But I saw his expression change.
He immediately walked toward the hallway.
"Who is it?" I asked.
"Work."
He answered.
"Hello?"
He disappeared around the corner.
I stayed on the couch.
Something was wrong.
I knew it.
But I didn't know what.
Ten minutes later, Daniel returned.
He kissed me again.
"I'm exhausted."
"Who called?"
"Nobody important."
Then he went upstairs.
I sat there alone.
My eyes fell on his phone.
He had left it on the coffee table.
I stared at it.
I shouldn't touch it.
I knew that.
But then the screen lit up.
One message appeared.
From Ava.
You promised me she would never find out.
My heart stopped.
I picked up the phone.
Before I could unlock it, another message appeared.
Daniel, I'm done waiting. You told me I would be your wife.
I heard footsteps upstairs.
I dropped the phone back onto the table.
Daniel appeared at the top of the staircase.
He looked directly at me.
And for the first time in six years of marriage, I saw my husband look at me like I was the person he was afraid of.
"Claire?"
I smiled.
"Yes?"
He slowly walked downstairs.
"What are you doing?"
I looked at his phone.
Then back at him.
"Waiting for you to tell me the truth."
His face went pale.
And that's when I knew Ava hadn't been lying.
There was another woman.
And somehow, that woman believed she was going to become my husband's wife.
But I still didn't know the worst part.
Because the next morning, Ava sent me a photograph.
And in that photograph, my husband wasn't alone.
