2

I paid no attention to him. With trembling hands, I sifted through the images in the file.

Tears blurred my vision as I looked up at him. "Zade is cheating on me."

"Zade loves you."

Bitterly, I tossed the pictures onto the desk. "Sure, he loves me."

Randy stared at the pictures in speechless shock, reflecting my own disbelief. The images of Zade with another woman were etched in my mind, the tousled look of his hair suggesting recent intimacy.

"Damn! Zade! What have you gotten yourself into, my friend? But now it all makes sense."

I glared at Randy sharply. My voice, filled with hurt and anger, demanded answers. "What makes sense?"

He looked at me with the same strange expression from the bar before dropping his gaze. "It would be better to hear it from Zade himself, Sapphire. It’s not my place-"

In an instant, I leaned forward across the desk. Surprise filled Randy’s eyes as I grabbed his tie, yanking him towards me.

"Zade is not here to tell me what the hell is going on," I snarled, locking eyes with him. "So you had better start talking. Now, which part of this shitshow makes sense to you?" I bit out the last part through gritted teeth.

He swallowed. "I suppose she must have been blackmailing him. That’s why he needed so much money."

I scowled. "Money?"

"The meeting today, the one that Zade stormed out of. I called it to tell him we were going to press charges for embezzlement if he didn’t return the money."

My heart sank. "Embezzlement?"

"It’s been going on for months, and he has been very clever at covering his tracks. But this week, finally, our accountants were able to trace the payments back to him."

I released Randy’s tie, stepping back, shattered. Staring at him, my head shook in disbelief. No way. It couldn’t be. This was not the Zade I knew. Zade was the most honest person I’d ever known. He would never betray Randy. Or… would he? Was it all a lie?

"But he’s your friend. Your business partner," I babbled. "He would never do that to you."

Randy adjusted his tie. "Well, clearly he has. I wanted to make it easy on him by asking him to return the money, and I would forget it, but I guess he doesn’t have that kind of money, so he pretended to be offended and stormed out. I have to be honest and tell you that it doesn’t look good for him, Sapphire. I’m afraid he could be going to prison for a very long time."

"Prison?" I whispered, struggling to process what Randy was telling me.

"Embezzlement is a serious crime." He picked up one of the pictures, shook his head in disgust, and flicked it away from him.

How strange. Even after seeing the repulsive pictures and learning that Zade was nothing more than a common thief, I wanted to wipe away that look of disgust from Randy’s face. Even after what he had done to me, I couldn’t bear for anyone to insult him.

My hand rushed forward, not to punch Randy’s face, but to cover my mouth. I closed my eyes. I needed a moment to try and make sense out of everything. But nothing seemed to be computing. It was all too much for me to take in at once. I had been so sure he was the one. From the moment I had seen him at that bar two years ago, I had felt an instant connection to him. I had felt him to my core as my inner soul told me I had found my soulmate. The more my friends tried to tell me I was too young to settle down to one man, the more sure I was that I had found that one man I wanted to be with forever.

I saw us growing old together. I saw him, with gray hair. I saw our children, our grandchildren. And now to find that my mate had betrayed me broke my heart into pieces.

I felt a dark cloud sweep over me as my heart came to grips with the decision I would have to make.

I opened my eyes. My hands were steady as I picked up the photos from the desk and placed them back into the file, slipping only one out and into my purse. I looked up at Randy. My cheeks burned with the pity I saw in his eyes.

I lifted my chin. “Could you take me back to get my car, please?”

“Sapphire, I’m really sorry. This is so messed up. I never wanted you to find out this way.”

“It’s okay. None of this is your fault. Thank you for being a good friend, Randy.”

“I feel like a heel, though. God, I wish I’d never suggested you come here.”

“I needed to know. And I’m glad I know.” Then I walked out of the office and went straight to the elevator. He followed me out and stood next to me. He said nothing. There was nothing to say. It felt like hours passed before the elevator doors opened.

The ride back to the restaurant was in total silence. Images and memories of Zade and me floated in and out of my mind. The last few weeks especially showed me the signs had been there, but I had not paid attention to his distance and preoccupation, writing it off as the usual work stress. But now it all made sense.

I expressed gratitude to Randy once more as he escorted me to my car.

“Will you be okay, Sapphire? Are you sure you can drive? Do you want me to follow you home or anything?”

I shook my head. “No. I’ll be okay.”

Reaching up, I brushed my lips against his cheek. “Thanks again for everything, Randy. You’ve been a great friend to us both. Shame Zade didn’t appreciate you.”

“Promise to call me if you need me?”

“Of course. Take care.”

I entered my car and pulled away. In the rear-view mirror, I watched as Randy became smaller, feeling as though Zade was diminishing in my heart. By the time I reached my apartment, I was sobbing my heart out. I recognized that I would need to find a way to mend my shattered heart from Zade’s betrayal, but not now. For now, I would just mourn the loss of him. It was a substantial loss. A very, very, very significant loss.

I drifted through the rest of the week in a daze. There was no word from Zade.

I refrained from trying to call him.

However, I did go to the seafront and cast into the ocean the pearl necklace he had given me. As soon as the milky beads touched the water, I was filled with overwhelming regret. I dove in, fully clothed, after it, but it was gone forever.

Much like Zade, who was gone forever from me.