Chapter 3 Am I The Third Wheel

Tatiana's Point of View

It started slowly. A shift in the air. A look that lasted a second too long. The absence of words where there used to be warmth. Scott had changed. At first, I thought he was just stressed. The company had launched a new wing, he was working later than usual, and wedding planning had become a second full-time job.

But then the excuses grew colder. His kisses became quick, his touches rare. And soon, we were nothing more than ghosts haunting the same house. I sat at the edge of the bed one night, still in my robe, watching him pull off his tie. "You didn't text back all day," I said softly.

He barely looked up. "I was in meetings."

"That's what you said yesterday. And the day before."

"Because it's true, Tatiana."

The way he said my name-flat, tired, like it didn't taste right in his mouth-stabbed at something inside me."I miss you," I whispered. He didn't answer. He just walked into the bathroom and closed the door behind him.

Days bled into weeks. The wedding was a month away, and everything should've been beautiful. But I was alone in every way that mattered. Until Mia and Thomas-our mutual couple-friends-proposed a hangout.

"Come on," Mia said on the phone, voice full of sugar and insistence. "You two need a break from the stress. Just drinks, laughs, a little dancing. Old times!"

I hesitated, but agreed.

Maybe, just maybe, this could fix something. Maybe if we were outside the tension of our home, he'd remember how to hold my hand again. Maybe I'd hear him laugh again, not that clipped version he gave me lately-the one that felt rehearsed.

Maybe I'd get my fiancé back.

The rooftop bar buzzed with soft jazz, string lights glowing overhead like suspended stars. The view of the city was breathtaking, but all I could look at was him.

Scott. Standing at the far side of the lounge... Laughing. Talking. With Katrina. She leaned into him slightly, her lips curved in that effortless way only she could pull off. Her red dress clung to her like a second skin. They looked... natural. Comfortable.

I stopped in my tracks.

They didn't see me yet. I swallowed hard and walked over to the group, plastering on a smile even as something coiled in my stomach."Hey, you made it!" Mia grinned, looping her arm through mine. Scott finally turned. "Hey," he said.

No kiss. Not even a touch.

Just... hey.

Katrina smiled, too brightly. "We were just talking about that insane pitch deck Thomas bombed last week. You'd have screamed." I laughed weakly and slid into a seat. Scott didn't sit beside me. He stayed standing next to Katrina, nursing his drink like this was just another networking event.

My chest ached.

I tried to join the conversation, but my thoughts kept drifting-wandering places I didn't want them to go. I watched how his eyes lit up when Kat teased him. How close they stood. How their laughs were perfectly synced.

And suddenly, it hit me.

Like a slap.

Am I the third wheel in my own relationship?

The thought punched the air out of me. I blinked, trying to shake it off. I must've imagined it. I had to be overthinking. Reading too much into things.

Right?

**********

The night had ended, but my chest still buzzed with unease.

I paced the living room as the front door clicked shut behind us. Scott was already loosening his tie, moving like everything was perfectly normal-like he hadn't just disappeared for nearly an hour with my best friend at a gathering that was supposed to be our chance to reconnect.

I turned toward him, arms folded tightly across my chest.

"What was that back there?"

He blinked. "What?"

"You and Katrina. You both vanished for almost an hour. Do you think I didn't notice?"He sighed, rolling his eyes slightly as he dropped his tie on the couch. "Tatiana, don't start this."

"Don't start what?" My voice cracked. "You've been cold, distant, barely even speaking to me these days. We're practically strangers in this house. And tonight, I watched my fiancé laugh and whisper with my best friend like I wasn't even there. You really don't see how that might bother me?"

He ran a hand through his hair, clearly agitated. "You're being paranoid."

"Paranoid?" I repeated, stunned. "You seriously want me to believe that was just casual chit-chat? You disappeared with her, Scott. And now you're acting like it's all in my head."

"She's my P.A., remember?" he snapped. "We were just talking about some work details."

"Work details?" I scoffed. "At a party? In secret? Really?"

He looked away, jaw clenched. "Just so you know," he said curtly, "I'll be going on a business trip tomorrow. It might take a few weeks."

My heart dropped.

"Our wedding is in less than a month!" I nearly shouted. "And you're telling me now? What is going on with you, Scott? What happened to us? Why are you acting like this?"He stood there for a moment, silent. His eyes met mine-but there was no warmth, no remorse, just a tired, blank indifference.

Then he said the words that shattered everything:

"I'm tired and need to sleep."

He turned his back and walked down the hallway, leaving me alone in the dim glow of the living room. I sat there in the dimly lit living room, the silence so loud it pressed against my chest. The only sound was the ticking of the wall clock and the echo of his retreating footsteps down the hall.

He didn't even look back.

I stared at the space he left behind, still expecting him to turn around. To say something-anything. To remind me that I wasn't imagining the distance.

But he didn't.

My lips trembled as my eyes filled, and before I could hold it back, the tears came-hot and fast, spilling down my cheeks. I curled my knees to my chest on the couch, the engagement ring on my finger suddenly feeling like it didn't belong. Like it mocked me.

What went wrong?

How did we go from stolen kisses and promises whispered in the dark... to this cold, unbearable silence? My phone buzzed on the side table. I didn't want to pick it up, not with tears choking me, but something told me to check. When I did, the name on the screen made me blink.

Susan-his mother.

I hesitated, wiping at my face quickly before answering."Hello?" My voice was hoarse, broken. There was a pause, then her soft, warm voice came through. "Tatiana... sweetheart, are you okay?"That simple question broke me all over again. A sob slipped from my lips, and I couldn't answer for several seconds.

"Oh honey..." she murmured. "Tell me what happened."

"I don't know," I whispered, cradling the phone like it was my only anchor. "He's changed. He barely looks at me anymore. He just said he's leaving for a business trip-and our wedding is in less than a month. I... I don't know what I did wrong."

Susan exhaled slowly on the other end. "My God... I knew something was off. I'm so sorry, darling. You don't deserve this."

"I tried to reach him tonight," I said, voice cracking. "I thought the hangout would bring us closer. But he disappeared-with Katrina. And when I asked him about it, he called me paranoid."

There was a tense silence on the line.

"I'll talk to him," Susan said firmly. "But first, I want you to take a break from all this, just for a while. I'm booking you into the WestCreek Resort-my treat. A week away might clear your head. Let me handle Scott."

I didn't respond immediately. My heart felt like glass under pressure.

"Thank you," I finally whispered.

"I'm truly sorry for the pain he's causing you, Tatiana. I'll get through to him. I promise."

When the call ended, I stared blankly at the phone, Susan's kindness only intensifying the ache in my chest. The moment the screen dimmed, I broke down all over again-sobbing silently into my palms as my shoulders shook uncontrollably.

Alone in the house I once called a home. Alone with a man who now felt like a stranger. Alone with questions I no longer knew how to ask.