“Don’t say my name like we’re having a normal conversation,” I told Andrew.
Every table around us had fallen silent. A waiter stood frozen near the bar holding a bottle of wine.
Andrew stood. “Claire, I can explain.”
I let out a short, broken laugh. “Really? Start with the anniversary text. Or maybe explain why our marriage is funding your affair.”
Vanessa’s head snapped toward him. “Your marriage?”
He closed his eyes briefly. That was enough.
She stepped back like she’d been shocked. “You told me you were separated.”
Of course he did, I thought. Of course he used the same lie everywhere.
Daniel looked at her with open disgust. “And you told me you were in Boston for a marketing conference.”
She opened her mouth, then closed it again.
The investigator, whose name tag read Melissa Kane, remained composed. “Mr. Bennett, we need your company phone and access card immediately.”
Andrew ignored her and reached toward me. “Claire, please. Let’s not do this here.”
I stepped back. “You already did.”
Melissa slid a paper across the table. “This is notice of administrative suspension pending full review. Security will collect your devices.”
Andrew’s tone hardened. “This is harassment.”
“No,” Melissa replied. “This is documentation.”
Then Vanessa did something none of us expected.
She grabbed the folder and flipped through it with shaking hands.
Her expression changed with every page.
Dinner receipts. Hotel invoices. Jewelry purchases. Car service logs. Expense approvals. And then, halfway through, a charge I recognized instantly—a boutique furniture store in Lincoln Park. Two thousand four hundred dollars. The date hit me like a blow.
