Page 95 of Unfaithful

And it wasn't great. Sara was talented at what she did, but in budgeting and managing her finances, she always fell short.

Looking at the report, I was deeply worried.

Sara had been gaining a lot of new clients, thanks to Bobby referring to her more and more, even though these referrals came as part of a trade-off. My company covered fifteen percent of the cost that should have been paid to Sara, offering it as a discounted service to our clients.

Sara didn't know this. She believed her growing client list was purely the result of word-of-mouth and her own hard work. While that was true to some extent, my company had been quietly supporting her behind the scenes. And despite our separation, stopping wasn't an option for me.

But with our companies about to be completely disconnected, she would be on her own, and it was clear she was struggling to manage the financial side of things. I used to have an entire department helping her handle it, but now she had to do it alone.

With so many clients, this wasn't the ideal time for her company to break away from mine, but it was what Sara wanted. I had been wracking my brain for a way to help her, but I knew that if I offered, she would refuse.

She needed significant capital to take on the mounting projects, and what she had requested and received in the divorce settlement wasn't enough.

I needed to talk to Bobby about this, and I had a feeling she wouldn't like what I had to say, especially since this wasn't agood time for us to exceed our budget, as it would hurt us a great deal.

After that, I attended a meeting and finished replying to emails. Then, I headed down to the lobby again, knowing that, like clockwork, Sara would go down for lunch.

I searched for her in the park across from our office building, where she would sit on a bench, eating a sandwich alone. She used to have lunch there with Bobby, and sometimes, I still saw Bobby sitting with her. I knew Sara didn't like it, but Bobby kept going anyway, sitting in silence, just to let Sara know she was truly sorry and that she still considered her a best friend.

Bobby never wanted to cover for me. I knew that. She had always urged me to tell Sara the truth, and now, I could see she regretted not taking action sooner.

When Sara followed me in the taxi, Bobby could have warned me. But she didn't. She knew Sara deserved to find out the truth, so she chose to stay silent. I used to have mixed feelings about that, but I knew now that Bobby did the right thing.

I walked up to her, and as I reached her bench, I heard her sigh. She knew it was me without even turning. Somehow, despite everything, there was still a connection between us—one that had survived the pain.

"Hi, gorgeous," I said as I sat beside her.

She didn't reply, just took a bite of her sandwich. In the beginning, she would tell me to go away or move to another bench. But now, she had given up on that. Her retaliation was silence.

"How was your date last night?" I asked, already knowing she had gone out with Archie.

I knew because, like every night, I had driven by her house. That was when I noticed the light above her front door flickering, on the verge of dying. So, I went to the store, bought a new bulb, and changed it.

Just as I was finishing, Julian suddenly opened the door, frowning at me.

"She's not here," he said.

"That's okay. I'm just changing this bulb."

"I could've done that," he admitted, glancing up. "But I didn't realize it needed changing."

"Where is she now?" I asked.

"On a date." Julian's tone was casual, but his sharp gaze studied me, waiting for my reaction. And I couldn't hide it. A painful pinch in my chest—deep, piercing, immediate.

"With whom?" The words slipped out before I could stop them.

"With Archie," he replied, but his voice softened, as if he knew exactly how much this would hurt. Still, he told me the truth. "They finally went on an official date."

"Oh." That was all I managed to say.

"I'd offer to let you in, but this isn't my house," he said. "Besides, Emma would throw a fit if she saw you here."

I narrowed my eyes at him, suddenly suspicious. "Why are you here?"

"For Emma," he said, grinning. "We're dating."

"Oh, okay," I replied, trying to sound like I was interested, but my mind was stuck on one thing. Sara was with Archie now.

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