Chapter 2 2

The absurdity of it all almost made me laugh. Chloe Miller, Ethan's little plaything, standing in my home, calling me a homewrecker.

"Maria, call 911," I said, my voice surprisingly steady.

Maria, who had been pushed aside, scrambled for the house phone.

Chloe lunged forward and snatched my iPhone from the console table where I'd left it. "No, you don't!" She hurled it against the marble floor. It shattered.

"He loves me!" Chloe shrieked, her face contorted. "He's going to leave you for me! Everyone knows you're just an old, barren hag he's stuck with for business!"

The words were meant to sting, and they did, but not in the way she intended. It was the casual cruelty, the utter lack of awareness.

"You have no idea what you're talking about," I said, my voice dropping to a dangerous low. "And you're trespassing. Assaulting my staff. Vandalizing my property."

Chloe tossed her hair. "Ethan won't let you do anything to me. He told me he'd protect me."

She seemed so sure. Did Ethan fill her head with such nonsense? Or was she simply that naive?

"Get her!" Chloe ordered her friends. They surged forward, a giggling, screeching mob of sorority sisters.

Maria tried to step between us. "Mrs. Vanderbilt! Stay back!" They shoved her again, and she stumbled.

"I am Mrs. Vanderbilt," I stated, my voice ringing with an authority they hadn't expected. "This is my house."

One of them, a redhead with too much makeup, snickered. "Not for long, sweetie. Chloe's the future Mrs. Vanderbilt."

They grabbed my arms, their nails digging into my skin, dragging me towards the front door. Neighbors were probably already peering out their windows. The humiliation was a fresh wave of nausea.

A black Escalade pulled up to the curb with a screech. Ethan.

He got out, his face a thundercloud as he took in the scene: me disheveled, held by these girls, Chloe looking triumphant.

His expression tightened when he saw my torn sleeve and the red marks on my arm.

Chloe rushed to him. "Ethan, darling! This old hag was trying to kick me out! She even called the cops on me!"

Ethan pushed her aside, his eyes fixed on me. He strode over and gently took my arm, his touch surprisingly careful as he pulled me away from the girls.

Chloe gasped, her eyes wide with disbelief. "Ethan? What are you doing?"

I looked at him, my voice raw. "Well, Ethan? Is this what you wanted?"

He stared at me, his jaw tight, a flicker of something unreadable in his eyes. He didn't speak.

Chloe shrieked again. "Ethan! She's the one who's wrong! You said... you said you didn't love her!"

Ethan finally looked at Chloe, his voice cold as ice. "Chloe, go home. We'll talk later."

My breath caught. We'll talk later?

"Ethan," I said, my voice trembling with suppressed fury. "You can't be serious."

He turned back to me, his expression hardening. "Olivia, she's just a kid. Don't make a scene. You're older, you should know better than to stoop to her level."

Older. Just a kid. The words were like slaps to the face, harder than any physical blow.