Her smile flickered.
Then she saw Marlene.
It disappeared.
I stepped aside.
“Come in, Lauren.
Breakfast is getting interesting.”
She did not move immediately.
Ryan did.
“This isn’t a good time.”
Lauren’s eyes jumped to him.
That tiny reflex told me more than any confession could have.
“Ryan?”
“Come inside,” I said.
She entered because refusing would have admitted too much.
I closed the door behind her.
Lauren set the pastry box on the counter.
Her rose-colored nails trembled against the cardboard.
“What’s going on?”
Marlene pushed the lease addendum across the table.
Lauren looked down.
She stopped pretending too.
“Where did you get that?”
Ryan snapped, “Don’t say anything.”
I looked at him.
“Interesting choice of words.”
Lauren’s face tightened.
“Emma, whatever you think this is—”
I pulled my phone from my robe pocket and placed it screen-down on the table.
“At 11:43 last night, you sent me a message about Ryan’s watch being on your nightstand.”
Silence.
Lauren swallowed.
“I can explain.”
“You deleted it.
I took a screenshot first.”
Ryan shut his eyes.
Lauren looked at him with naked panic now.
“You said she was asleep.”
The words escaped before she could stop them.
Nobody moved.
Lauren covered her mouth.
Ryan stared at her.
I felt something inside me settle.
There it was.
Not the whole confession, but enough.
“Thank you,” I said quietly.
Lauren’s eyes filled with tears.
“Emma—”
“Don’t cry yet.
We haven’t reached the money.”
I opened the kitchen drawer and removed the bank records I had printed at 2:14 that morning.
I laid them out one page at a time.
Joint savings transfers.
Consulting reimbursements.
Apartment payments.
Hotel charges.
Cash withdrawals.
