Chapter 187

• VALENTINA
• I leaned against the closed door of the guest suite, the wood cool on my back through the thin silk of my gown. The room was dim, just the bedside lamp throwing soft yellow light across the bed and long shadows on the walls. My legs gave out slowly. I slid down until I sat on the floor, knees pulled up, arms wrapped around them. The engagement ring pressed into my palm like it weighed a hundred pounds. I stared at it. The diamond caught the lamp light and threw tiny sparks that felt cruel now.
• Tears came then. Hot and fast. I’d held them back in the car, in the halls, even when I saw him in the living room. But here, alone, they spilled over. The picture wouldn’t leave my head. Gustavo on that couch in only his boxers. His clothes thrown around. Gabrielle’s earring on the carpet. Her lipstick on the glass. That black silk scarf across his chest like she’d claimed him. The way she stood there adjusting her dress, calm, like she’d won something. My chest hurt so bad I pressed my hand to it, trying to push the ache away. It didn’t work.