Chapter 3
The next morning, I played it cool.
“I think that piano video of yours blew up,” I told him casually.
Daniel didn’t flinch.
He even laughed, pinched my cheek.
“Not a bad thing, right? My girl’s got a side hustle now.”
“If brands come calling, you’re gonna have to keep me as your trophy husband.”
I smiled.
Then shot straight.
“So… what’s the deal with your ex?”
He paused mid–button, then wrapped his arms around me.
He leaned in to kiss my ear–but I turned my head, just enough to dodge him.
“You jealous?” he said softly.
“We broke up a long time ago. She left for grad school overseas, I stayed here.”
“Different paths, different lives. It just ended. Now? You’re the only one in my life.”
I smiled again.
But this time, I was thinking–she left.
She’s coming back.
What happens when your paths cross again?
Later at work, I wasn’t myself.
Misfilled a prescription, had to apologize to a patient.
“Let’s pause for thirty minutes,” I told my assistant, rubbing my temples.
“I need a minute.”
My head was spinning the entire morning.
If Daniel had just cheated outright, I could’ve dumped him, clean break.
17:14
Oh! Your ‘Gift Was Betrayal? Here’s My Return: Eternal Remorse!
9.6%
Chapter 3
But this? This maybe–yes, maybe–no emotional limbo was eating me alive.
The girl hadn’t even reappeared yet, and I was already losing sleep.
“Lauren, your fiancé off on another trip?”
Rachel, one of the front–desk girls, walked in with her phone.
Daniel worked as a private travel guide, pretty well–known in the industry.
He traveled all over–clients paid a premium for his curated tours.
She handed me her phone.
He’d posted nine photos from a beach town.
Nine.
“Ugh, I wish I had your fiancé’s life…”
She kept talking, but I didn’t hear a word.
Because six of those nine posts?
Same girl.
Same pose.
Over and over.
Daniel’s rule was never to feature the same client more than twice per trip.
So why her?
My gut twisted.
The kind of twist that only comes from knowing something’s off.
I texted him:
“Hey, you coming home tonight?”
His reply came fast.
“Of course I am, babe. What, you want me to sleep on the street? Haha.”
“I gotta finish the tour schedule, I’ll be back soon.”
He sounded perfectly normal.
Almost too normal.
17:14
Oh! Your ‘Gift‘ Was Betrayal? Here’s My Return: Eternal Remorse!
9.9%
Chapter 3
I sighed, tossed the phone down.
Maybe I was overthinking it.
And if he was cheating?
I should just end it.
Why the hell was I playing detective like some underpaid Sherlock Holmes?
17:14
