When You Loved Me, I Was Gone

If you knew you were dying, would you let yourself do something completely insane, just for once? Sofia Hebert set the medical report on fire and watched the flames slowly die in her eyes, much like her own short life. A car engine hummed outside in the garden. Sofia knew Colton was home. She rinsed every trace of ash down the drain. When she turned around, she saw him walking in through the front door, backlit by the warm glow from outside. At six-foot-two, Colton had the kind of presence that made a room go still without him having to say a word. He hung up his coat and headed straight upstairs without looking at her. Sofia said suddenly. "Your mother said tomorrow is Benjamin's birthday. We're expected to be there." His footsteps stopped. He turned and looked down at her from the stairs. "You sound pretty close to her. I guess you've been feeding her a lot of useful updates lately." The words caught in her throat, but she still managed a smile that felt almost convincing. "Of course," she said lightly. "I need the money." Colton gave a short, humorless laugh and turned away. Sofia stood there until he disappeared upstairs, then walked back into the kitchen. She looked down at the last smudges of ash in the sink and let out a quiet laugh at her own expense. Then she turned on the faucet again and washed away what little was left. When she braced both hands against the counter, she found herself staring into nothing. It hit her then that grief could hollow a person out so completely that there was nothing left to say, no tears, no anger, no words. After a while, she straightened, pulled herself together, and headed upstairs. By the time she pushed open the bedroom door, the sound of running water told her Colton was already in the shower. She hesitated only briefly. Then she walked to the bathroom, pushed the door open, and stepped inside. Colton looked over in surprise as she slipped off her nightgown and stepped beneath the spray with him. She leaned in, pressed her lips to his Adam's apple, and whispered. "Take me." "What is this? Are they pressuring you to have a baby again?" "Yes." Sofia rested a hand against his waist and looked up at him seductively. "In a family like yours, a child is the best leverage there is." "You think you're worthy of that?" Colton's hand clamped down hard enough to make her flinch. He covered the sound she made before it could fully leave her mouth. Even with their bodies pressed together, even in the middle of something this intimate, his face remained cold and unreadable. Sofia shut her eyes. She could not bear to look at what this really was. A few minutes later, he stopped. Then his voice brushed past her ear, edged with mockery. "Sorry. I feel absolutely nothing for you." He pulled away without hesitation and walked out, leaving her alone with the humiliation of being abandoned halfway through. Late that night, Sofia heard a car engine outside. She was lying awake in the guest room. When she went to the window, she saw a Porsche parked below and Colton standing in the garden. A moment later, a woman stepped out of the car and walked straight into his arms. Her embrace was easy, intimate, familiar. Sofia's nails bit into her palm before a gust of cold air slipped beneath her collar, and she finally snapped out of her shock. Down below, Colton seemed to sense her watching. He looked up. Their eyes met across the dark, and neither of them looked away. Then the woman looked up, and Sofia finally saw her clearly. It was Rivka Yates, Colton's former fiancée. She was the Yates family's pampered heiress—the same woman who had stormed Sofia and Colton's wedding and been sent overseas by her family soon afterward. "Sofia," Rivka called up with a bright smile. "Long time no see." Sofia smiled back. "It has." So this was Colton's new move. If he wanted to disgust her, he had gone all the way and brought his first love home. She wondered what Benjamin would say when he saw her. For the first time in a long while, Sofia felt something close to anticipation. She was dying anyway. Surely she was allowed to enjoy one last spectacle before the end. What did love matter now? The next morning, Sofia came downstairs dressed and ready. Then she found Rivka already sitting in the living room. Footsteps sounded behind her. She turned and saw Colton walk right past her and head straight for Rivka. Sofia did not react. She simply followed them outside. The moment the car door opened, she got in first and settled into the front passenger seat. Then she lowered the window, looked at Rivka standing there with open annoyance written all over her face, and smiled. "This should be fun," she said. "I've never tried a threesome road trip before."