Page 165 of Push

“Teddy promised her the world, but she ended up with nothing. Not one penny.” Sarah loomed over the table, her mouth curved in an almost sinister smile. “He may have paid for their little bastard to go to the same school, but that boynever became one-tenth of the man of my son. I won. I endured through it all.Thatis strength.Thatis the type of woman you’re not.”

“You’re right,” I agreed quietly. “I’m not the same type of woman you are. I married a man for love, and when he slipped up and made the wrong choice, I demanded better. I was worth him stepping up to try harder. And he is. He chose me. Not Kayleigh. Notyou.”

Sarah took a step back as if I’d slapped her. I’d managed to hit her where it hurt. She took an even bigger step back when Romeo appeared beside the table with a fresh cocktail for Marnie and a new Coke—complete with a little umbrella—for me.

“Buonasera.” Romeo smiled. “Forgive me for arriving so late.” He slid into the seat beside Marnie and draped a lazy arm around her shoulders. “Who is your friend,sorellina?” He asked Marnie the question, but he wasn’t looking at her. His eyes were pinned to me.

This was…unexpected.

Marnie’s mouth dropped open. She was too shocked to say a word.

“No one,” I answered. “Mrs. Sullivan was just leaving.” Hopefully, forever, this time.

Sarah’s eyes narrowed. “This isn’t over.”

“Itisover,” I said. “Toby told you, and now I’m telling you. Not only does my husband deserve better than you, my son does, too. You’re not welcome in our lives.”

Sarah blinked, stunned.

“Ciao ciao,” Romeo said, waving her away.

Sarah lifted her chin and spun around with a sneer on her lips, but the steps she took across the yacht club weren’t as self-assured as when she’d first arrived. She was rattled.

Me too.

I’d backed Toby’s mother into a corner. She’d spewed more weaknesses than I’d ever imagined possible. The mental jigsaw in my mind unscrambled, mismatched pieces flying off the pile, snapping together to create a picture.

Abigail.

Penniless.

With a son.

At Toby’s school.

Marnie’s smile was even bigger when she raised her glass. “Rot in hell!” she called after Sarah.

To her credit, Toby’s mother never looked back.

But I didn’t smile. Or laugh. My mind scattered, whirring in overdrive, and I scrambled to dig my phone out of my bag, unlock it, and flick through the photos in my camera reel.

There was only one Abigail I knew—Abigail Cooper, Ian’s mum.

Finding the string of photos I needed didn’t take long. I zoomed in, squinted my eyes, and examined every detail.

“No fucking way,” I breathed.

I swiped through photo after photo of Toby and Ian, then froze.Bingo. Christmas, five years ago. I’d caught a candid video of everyone opening gifts. Toby’s father, still striking in his fifties, looked on as my gorgeous husband handed a wrapped box to his best friend.

My heart pounding, I leaned in closer, poring over the details.

At first glance, the three men didn’t look much alike. But when they smiled, I hit pause. There it was. Proof. Matching dimples tucked into their right cheeks.

My hand flew over my mouth in shock.

Toby and Ian weren’t just friends.

They were brothers.

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