Tyler's brows furrowed in confusion as he took another look at the mail.
“What the…?” he murmured, his confusion clear in his tone.
Julie stood beside him, her anxiety mounting as Tyler continued to stare at the phone.
“Is everything okay?” she asked, forcing a concerned expression to hide her own impatience.
Tyler gave her a cursory glance, his eyes still darting over the message on his phone.
He placed his wine glass back in the tray and turned back to Julie.
“Can we talk outside?” he said, his voice taut.
Julie’s mind raced, her thoughts spinning like a centrifuge.
What’s going on? she thought to herself, unable to keep the worry from her voice as she replied,
“O-of course.”
Her heart pounded against her chest as she followed Tyler out the doors of the ballroom and onto the terrace, the warm night air doing little to calm her nerves.
She could only hope the drug hadn’t begun to take effect yet.
Otherwise, things were about to become very, very awkward.
Oh wait, he didn't take a sip yet. She swallowed hard.
As soon they stepped onto the dimly lit terrace, Tyler extended his phone towards Julie, his voice tight with barely suppressed anger.
“Explain this,” he demanded, his voice barely a whisper.
Julie’s eyes widened as she read the email on Tyler’s phone, her mind reeling.
What the hell…?
Julie’s mind raced, trying to comprehend the contents of the email.
Who sent this? she thought, panic gripping her as she stammered out a response.
“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about, I don't know what this is” she lied, her eyes darting away from Tyler’s gaze. “I would never betray you, Tyler. You know that.”
“Oh, shut the hell up!” Tyler snapped, his voice like a whip. “I’m done with your lies.”
He stepped closer, his shadow looming over Julie. “You’ve been playing me from the start,” he hissed, his words a snarl. “I was a fool to trust you. A damn fool.”
Running his hands through his hair and letting out sharp breaths simultaneously, his mind flashed back to the anonymous message he had received weeks ago, showing a picture of Samantha and Owen in a bar together.
Of course the message was designed to create doubt, to tear at the fragile threads of his marriage. He had been suspicious from the start. Who else would want to destroy his marriage? The pieces began to fall into place. Julie.
It had to be her.
So he hired a private investigator and a hacker, driven by a gut feeling that Julie was behind it all.
And now, this email was the final proof. She had been manipulating him, playing her twisted games from the start.
As if what she did in London.. drugging him into having sex with her.. wasn’t enough, she had gone further, trying to ruin everything he had with Samantha.
Julie’s face paled as she realized the gravity of the situation.
She had underestimated Tyler.
She thought she could outsmart him, but now, standing under his furious gaze, she knew she had made a terrible mistake.
“You think you could get away with it, Julie?” Tyler’s voice was cold, each word laced with venom. “Did you really think I wouldn’t find out? You sent that picture, didn’t you? You wanted to tear us apart. But why? What did you gain from this?”
Julie’s lips trembled as she tried to muster a defense, but the words stuck in her throat.
She had no excuses left, no lies to hide behind.
Tyler shook his head, disgust clear in his eyes. “You’re pathetic,” he spat. “I should have seen through you from the beginning. But don’t worry, Julie. You’re finished here. You’ll never get another chance to mess with my life again.”
Julie felt the sting of Tyler’s words, her shoulders sagging with defeat. But she was not one to back down so easily.
“And what about you, Tyler?” she asked, lifting her chin defiantly. “You’re the one who was always complaining about Samantha. You said you didn’t love her anymore. So, why are you blaming me for your broken marriage?”
Tyler’s face hardened at the mention of his wife’s name, his jaw tensing. He took a step forward, the anger in his eyes clear as day.
“You don’t get to talk about my marriage,” he snarled, his voice low and dangerous. “This is about you, Julie. You thought you could seduce me, trick me, betray me, and I would just let it slide?”
“You wanted this, Tyler,” she shot back, her voice a mix of anger and desperation. “You wanted me.”
Tyler’s expression darkened, his lip curling into a snarl.
“You think I wanted this?” he spat, his voice razor sharp.
“Yes!.. you did Ty.” Julie spat. “Didn't you call on the day your wife left your house?? Why did you call me then?”
Tyler’s mind raced with denial and indignation at Julie's words. He’d never intended for things to turn out this way. He’d only called Julie that day to make Samantha jealous.
She was supposed to beg for me back, he thought bitterly. She was supposed to be furious. But instead, she left. And now…
His eyes hardened as he took another step towards Julie.
“Listen Julie, I never wanted this,” he growled, his words like a low, warning rumble.
But Julie, though shaken, stood her ground.
She raised her chin, her lips curling into a smirk that didn’t quite reach her eyes.
“Fine, Ty,” she sneered. “But let me tell you something - you’re losing in more ways than one. Your sweetheart huh? She’s got someone else in London now.”
Tyler’s heart stuttered at her words, disbelief clawing at him.
“W-what are you talking about?” he demanded, his voice rough, almost desperate.
Julie’s smirk widened, though there was a flicker of something vulnerable in her eyes.
“Oh, don’t act so surprised,” she taunted, her voice dripping with malice. “You think she’d just sit around pining for you? No, Ty. She’s moved on.”
She took a step back, the smirk twisting into something crueler, more mocking.
“If you ever want to come back…” She scoffed, her laughter cold and hollow. “Of course honey, I’ll be here, waiting.”
With that, she turned on her heel, striding away with a mocking laugh that echoed in the night air.
But as she left the terrace, her heart pounded wildly in her chest, fear finally breaking through the mask she had worn so well.
Did he also find out about the accident?
The thought clawed at her, tightening the knot of dread in her stomach.
She could only hope… hope that was the only thing he uncovered.. the anonymous mail.
Tyler stood rooted to the spot, Julie’s words reverberating in his mind.
Now has someone else?
Samantha would move on just like that? So fast?
His breath hitched, the thought twisting in his gut like a knife.
No, it can’t be.
He tried to shake it off, tried to convince himself that Julie was lying, trying to hurt him out of spite.
He swallowed hard, his breath catching in her throat.