Victory in Obscurity
rs hung from the ceiling, casting a brilliant light over the mingling tech giants, venture capitalists, and journa
ss of water. I wore a simple, tailored black pantsuit. It was a uniform o
I saw
rming and confident. Bethany was on his arm, draped in a glittering designer gown, her smile practice
eyes
usion, then a flash of something else-annoyance. Bethany followed his gaze, and her perfectly ma
a deliberate, predatory advan
er face into a mask of sorrowful surpris
loud whisper, designed to draw the attention of those n
f to hug me, a gestu
ck, just enough to mak
I said. My voice
snapped back into place. "We were so worried. When you just... ran away... David was devast
n any words. I watched the practiced act, the trembling lip, the carefully pl
on Bethany's shoulder. He looked me up a
o admit, I'm surprised to see you here. This is a rather exclusive
ou did, disappearing like that, leaving me at the altar... It was unforgivable.
t into a personal failing. He was publicly shaming me,
w. Whispers rippled th
The one who ra
ks... di
en doing here?
my past life, this would have shattered me. I would
ey were doing exactly what I expected them to d
u left me and my family to face the world alone, branding me as a man who co
arsh whisper only I could hear. "You are nothing