Chapter 3: Savior

The evening of my twenty-seventh birthday, Owen wanted to spend some “quality time” together, but knowing what I knew now, I brushed him off, claiming I had plans with a friend. He seemed annoyed, but surprisingly he let it go.

I didn’t actually have any plans, but I decided it would look suspicious if I didn’t go anywhere, so I texted my friend, Nadine. She was always in the mood for something to do. We agreed to meet at Club Fyre for drinks and dancing.

For the longest time, I never lived for myself. Everything I did was for Owen or for the family business. We were a corporate investment firm, and we knew how to handle and increase funds. Our company was renowned, and simply having the Lush name made one instantly famous. But I never did anything for me. It was time to change that.

Ignoring Owen as he watched TV on our sofa, I put on a short, slinky black dress and styled my red hair in messy waves before slipping on some stilettos. I put some diamond stud earrings in, adorned myself with a matching necklace, and mussed my hair again for good measure. Then I carefully descended the stairs and grabbed my keys.

“Where are you going, looking like that?” Owen asked, scowling. He was always so jealous, always concerned I was cheating. But I guess that makes sense if he was cheating. I should have seen the signs.

“I’m going to Club Fyre with Nadine,” I said as I applied some red lipstick in front of the mirror on the wall.

“You look awfully dressed up for just Nadine. Are you sure you aren’t meeting someone?” His scowl deepened.

“Yes, I’m meeting Nadine.” I finished my lipstick and picked up my purse, saying goodbye to Owen, who didn’t cease scowling. He looked dumbfounded that I would talk back to him. I never used to talk back. I’d never even argued with him, always agreeable. How boring, now that I thought about it.

Confident I was ready, I got in my Mercedes—an older model than the one I had at twenty-nine—and drove off.

Nadine was waiting for me at the club. She was a beautiful, dark-skinned, dark-haired woman who lived for fun and the thrill of being chased. Tonight, she wore a red dress with a low-cut V-neckline and adorable black pumps. She wore a black jacket over it that only came to just below her shoulder blades. The outfit made her stand out and drew every eye in the room to her. Well, every eye that wasn’t on me.

“You look great!” she yelled over the music.

“So do you!” I yelled back, grinning.

“Let’s have some fun!” She led me over to the bar, where we sat down. The bartender was in the middle of mixing drinks, so she asked, “How’s your birthday so far, birthday girl?”

“Better now that I’m here,” I admitted. “I needed a girls’ night.”

“Well, you asked the right woman! Too bad you’re married, or we could see how many guys would buy us drinks.”

“They don’t know I’m married, now, do they?” I said conspiratorially.

She winked. “Now you’re thinking like me.”

A handsome man locked eyes with me over the crowd, giving me a cocky smirk, and I turned back to the bar, forgetting for a moment that I’m supposed to be moving on from Owen. I was still getting used to this, so I reminded myself that it’s normal to feel guilty. But Owen was a cheater, and I was leaving him. I could afford the attention of men.

I glanced back over my shoulder, intending to smile back, but the man was already gone. The club was a sea of gyrating people, and after downing several drinks, Nadine said, “Let’s dance!”

I felt a little woozy from the alcohol, but I agreed, following her out onto the dance floor. Bodies pushed up against me, men and women alike dancing to the rhythm of the songs the DJ blasted.

Behind me, I heard a girl yelling. “No! Let me go!” she shouted.

I turned to look, noticing three or four men surrounding a petite blonde woman. They were trying to lead her outside, but the woman looked like she was resisting. She definitely did not want to leave with these men.

The martinis probably made me feel bolder, but I couldn’t let these men harass the girl. Pretending to know her, I sidled up—more like staggered up—and slurred, “Hey! What are you doing with my friend?”

Pushing my way between two of the men, I linked arms with the girl, surprised when I saw who it was. It was the blonde I saw Owen cheating with!

“Let’s go. This is too much trouble,” one of the men said.

“Yeah. The boss can deal with this,” another agreed.

They dispersed, leaving us, and I looked at the woman. “Thanks,” she said, looking up from beneath long lashes.

She obviously didn’t recognize me. Why would she? In all this time, I never caught her with my husband.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

“Sky,” she answered, a grateful smile on her lips as she took her arm back from mine. “Sky Bloomington.”

I intended to say, “Nice to meet you,” but a sudden wave of nausea hit me. I was going to be sick. Instead of my intended pleasantries, what came out was an unintelligible, “Excuse me.” Then I rushed for the door.

I passed Owen and his friends on the way out. Thankfully, he didn’t see me. He went to this club as well.

I looked back, watching him walk right past Sky as if he didn’t know her, and I had the feeling that this was the moment they would have met. It would have been Owen who saved Sky from those men if I hadn’t intervened tonight. Not even the nausea could override this surreal feeling as I stepped outside of Club Fyre.

I might have just changed fate.