The Man She Threw Away

t rooms, the echo of his footsteps a constant reminder of what he had lost. Or rather, what he had never

w through a new, cynical lens. Every time he had felt a pric

hisper, her arms around his neck. "Noah's just...

is insecurities, a lie he had

ery opening for one of Chloe's artist friends, he had stepped out for some air. T

ve she landed Liam O

re of Noah from their college days? Liam is a dead ringer for him. Chloe always ha

o lean against the brick wall, his stomach churning. A substitute. He had been nothing more than a stand-i

two weeks from now. His wedding day. Not to Chloe, but to a woman he had only met onc

thought, carried it to the building's trash chute and let it fall. He went back for more. Her brushes, her paints, her sketchbooks. He was purging her from his space, h

ht his eye. It was a picture of him and Chloe at a dimly lit bar, their heads close together, smili

s cuf

birthday, a unique architectural motif that was deeply personal. He had been so proud of the

ing them. A trophy. A

his own identical pair. He closed the box, walked out of his buil

days. Not a call, not a text.

on. His friend and colleague, Mark Johnson, saw him by the elevator. Mark, who had

n on his face. "I saw the email about the all-hands meeting. So

ing. Liam forced a

have the energy to explain the tangled, ugly truth. Let them