Chapter 1: The Woman Wearing My Anniversary Gift
“Are you here to carry our bags?””
Lila Monroe asked the question while standing beneath the wing of my Gulfstream, wearing my anniversary scarf.
My husband laughed.
And for one extraordinary second, I wondered whether nine years of marriage had taught Camden Pierce absolutely nothing about the woman standing in front of him.
I didn't answer immediately.
I watched a strand of blonde hair escape Lila's sunglasses as she adjusted the Hermès silk around her neck. The cream-and-gold scarf had cost more than some people's monthly rent. Camden had bought it for our fifth anniversary during a weekend in Paris, back when he still remembered how I took my coffee and which side of the bed I preferred.
He had wrapped it around my shoulders beneath the lights of the Champs-Élysées.
Now another woman was wearing it.
And she was looking at me as though I were the hired help.
“Vivian,” Camden said, straightening his navy jacket.
“You weren't supposed to be here.””
That was interesting.
I glanced at the aircraft behind him.
“Neither were you, apparently.””
One of the junior executives coughed into his fist.
Lila tilted her head.
“Camden, is this the wife?””
He gave her an irritated look.
“Unfortunately.””
The word landed harder than the slap I had imagined delivering.
Nine years.
Nine Christmas mornings. Three miscarried pregnancies. Two company expansions. One hospital room where I had held his hand while his father died.
And now I was apparently an unfortunate inconvenience.
I looked toward the pilots.
“Captain Reynolds?””
The older pilot immediately stepped forward.
“Yes, Mrs. Pierce.””
“Please confirm the passenger manifest for this flight.””
Camden's smile disappeared.
“Vivian, don't start.””
I didn't look at him.
“Captain?””
Reynolds glanced briefly at Camden before answering.
“The approved passenger manifest listed Mr. Camden Pierce, Mrs. Pierce, and two company representatives. Mrs.
Pierce was subsequently removed from the final manifest at Mr. Pierce's request. Ms. Monroe was added approximately forty minutes before departure.””
I turned my eyes toward my husband.
“Removed?””
Camden rubbed his forehead.
“It was a last-minute business adjustment.””
“Business?””
“Yes. Lila is helping with a client development project.””
Lila smiled and lifted her chin.
“I'm actually quite good with people.””
“I can see that,” I replied.
She didn't recognize the insult.
Camden took another step toward me.
“Vivian, we can discuss this privately. You're making everyone uncomfortable.””
I looked around the hangar.
Six junior executives had stopped working.
The maintenance supervisor, George, stood beside a tool cabinet with his arms folded.
Nora, my executive assistant, held a black folder against her chest.
Even the catering manager had stopped arranging the refreshments.
“Camden,” I said, “you brought an unauthorized passenger onto a corporate aircraft, removed your wife from an approved passenger manifest, and used company resources for what appears to be a personal trip.””
He rolled his eyes.
“God, listen to yourself. It's a plane, Vivian. Not the presidential aircraft.””
“No. It's a company asset.””
“Exactly. My company.””
I finally smiled.
It was a small smile.
The kind I usually reserved for people who had just signed contracts without reading the final page.
“Your company?””
Lila laughed.
“Oh, don't tell me you're one of those wives who thinks she owns everything because her husband lets her come to the office.””
George suddenly became fascinated by his clipboard.
Nora's expression didn't change.
Camden, however, seemed encouraged.
“Vivian has always liked playing executive,” he told Lila.
“It's a hobby.””
I looked at the scarf again.
“Do you know where he bought that?””
Lila touched it.
“Paris. Isn't it beautiful?””
“Yes.””
I paused.
“He gave it to me for our fifth anniversary.””
Her fingers stopped moving.
Camden's jaw tightened.
“Vivian, that's enough.””
“Did you tell her it was mine?””
He lowered his voice.
“I told you we would discuss this later.””
“That's not an answer.””
Lila looked between us.
For the first time, her confidence seemed less comfortable.
“Camden told me you two were basically separated.””
I turned toward her.
“Did he?””
“He said you were living separate lives. That the marriage was over except for paperwork.””
I nodded slowly.
“Interesting. Because last Sunday, he asked me whether we should spend Thanksgiving with my sister.””
Camden's face reddened.
“Stop talking.””
“Last Tuesday, he asked me to approve the renovation budget for our Connecticut house.””
“Vivian!””
“And yesterday morning, he kissed me goodbye before leaving for Boston.””
Lila pulled the scarf away from her throat.
Camden grabbed her elbow.
“Don't listen to her. She's being dramatic.””
I watched his hand tighten around Lila's arm.
Then I looked at Nora.
“Open the folder.””
Nora stepped forward.
“Certainly.””
She placed several documents on the metal worktable beside us.
“Flight authorization,” she said.
“Passenger manifest. Fuel records. Catering invoice. Security footage reference.””
Camden glanced at the pages.
“What is this supposed to prove?””
Nora answered without looking at him.
“That the aircraft departed Teterboro under a company flight authorization signed electronically using your credentials.””
Camden scoffed.
“Because I approved the flight.””
“You approved a flight to Boston for a hospital board meeting,” I said.
He folded his arms.
“Yes.””
“Then why did the aircraft land in Nantucket?””
Silence.
Lila's face changed.
Camden looked at me.
“What?””
I turned one page.
“According to the flight records, the aircraft landed at Nantucket Memorial Airport at 11:42 a.m. It remained there for six hours. Then it flew to Boston, stayed for twenty-three minutes, and returned here.””
The maintenance supervisor slowly lowered his clipboard.
Lila whispered, “Camden?””
He didn't answer.
I continued.
“The catering order included champagne, a private lunch, and a birthday cake with the inscription 'To My Favorite Person.''”
Lila's eyes widened.
“That was supposed to be private.””
I looked at her.
“Apparently, it wasn't.””
Camden reached for the folder.
I moved it away.
“Don't touch company records.””
“Company records?”” He laughed sharply.
“Vivian, I run operations. I authorize these flights. I manage the pilots.
I oversee the maintenance budget. You wouldn't know what happens here if I didn't tell you.””
I studied him for a moment.
Then I asked a question that made Nora lower her eyes to hide a smile.
“Camden, do you remember who paid for the first aircraft?””
He shrugged.
“My father helped with the initial financing.””
“Your father died eleven years ago.””
“His estate—”
“His estate contributed nothing.””
I opened my handbag and removed a small silver key.
I placed it on the table.
“The first aircraft was purchased through Alden Meridian Holdings. The second through Pierce Aero Leasing. The hangar belongs to Alden Property Group. The operating company belongs to Pierce Aviation Holdings.””
He stared at me.
I continued quietly.
“And every one of those entities is controlled by a trust established by my father, with me as its sole beneficiary and voting director.””
Camden laughed.
It sounded forced.
“That's ridiculous.””
“Is it?””
“You're my wife.””
“Yes.””
“My name is on the company.””
“Yes.””
“So I own—”
“You own a title, Camden.””
His mouth closed.
I looked toward the jet.
“You have a management position. You have delegated authority. You have an expense account. You have a company car and a generous compensation package.””
I returned my gaze to him.
“You do not own the aircraft. You do not own the company. And you certainly don't own the people who work here.””
Lila took a step away from him.
“Camden, you told me you were the majority owner.””
He looked at her sharply.
“Not now.””
“You said the entire aviation group was yours.””
“I said not now!””
His shout echoed through the hangar.
Nobody moved.
I closed the folder.
“Effective immediately, your authority to approve flights, expenditures, vendor payments, and personnel decisions is suspended pending an internal review.””
Camden stared at me.
“You can't do that.””
“I just did.””
“You're my wife!””
“And you're currently an employee under investigation.””
For a moment, I thought he might strike the table.
Instead, he laughed again.
“You think you can destroy me because I had an affair?””
“No.””
I stepped closer.
“I think you destroyed yourself because you believed nobody would ever check what you were doing.””
Nora's phone vibrated.
She glanced at the screen, then looked at me.
“Vivian?””
“What is it?””
“The security team found something else.””
“What?””
She hesitated.
Then she opened a second document.
“There's a second flight authorization associated with Mr. Pierce's account. It was submitted three days ago.””
I frowned.
“Where was the aircraft supposed to go?””
Nora turned the screen toward me.
The destination was not Boston.
It was Miami.
And the listed passenger was not Lila Monroe.
It was a company name I had never seen before.
Camden went completely still.
I looked at him.
“Would you like to explain why my aircraft was scheduled to transport someone to Miami under a false business authorization?””
He swallowed.
Then his phone rang.
He looked at the screen.
For the first time that morning, my husband appeared genuinely frightened.
Because the caller wasn't Lila.
It was his mother.
May you like
And when he answered, I heard her first words clearly.
“Camden, tell me you haven't let Vivian see the Meridian account.””
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