Jordan’s smile disappeared the moment he looked inside the box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For several seconds, he didn’t say anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He simply stared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His face had gone completely pale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Percy noticed immediately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat is it?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Continue reading on next page\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Jordan slammed the lid shut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNothing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark calmly reached over and opened the box again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cActually,\u201d he said, \u201cI think everyone deserves to know why you’re so upset.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My heart was pounding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had no idea what Clark had put inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That hadn’t been part of our plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had hired him to pretend to be my boyfriend for a few hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I hadn’t asked him to confront Jordan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I hadn’t asked him to bring anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And yet there he stood, completely calm, while my ex-husband looked as though he’d just seen a ghost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark turned toward me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think you should know this too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He reached into the box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Inside was a small envelope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He handed it to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I looked at Jordan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His expression told me everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He was terrified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I opened the envelope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Inside was a printed photograph.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My hands began to shake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It showed Jordan sitting at a restaurant with Percy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But that wasn’t the surprising part.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The photograph had been taken more than a year earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the date printed beneath it, it was from the same period when Jordan had repeatedly told me he was working late.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I looked at him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou told me you were at the office.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan didn’t answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Percy stared at him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou told me you were still married because you were afraid to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan looked at her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPercy, that’s not\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She interrupted him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDon’t.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The party had gone completely quiet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our son stood several feet away, surrounded by his friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I didn’t want him dragged into his parents’ argument.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So I took a breath and stepped toward Jordan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis isn’t about me anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He looked confused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou’ve already made your choices.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I held up the photograph.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat I don’t understand is why you’ve been lying to everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark stepped beside me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBecause there’s more.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan immediately looked at him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou need to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark smiled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI’m afraid that’s not happening yet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He pulled another document from the box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This time, Jordan’s expression changed completely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was a copy of an agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I recognized the company name at the top.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan’s company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat is that?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark handed it to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt concerns a business account your ex-husband controlled.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I read the first page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then the second.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I couldn’t understand what I was seeing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There were payments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Large payments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Transfers made over several months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And several of them had been made while Jordan and I were still married.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I looked at him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat’s this?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan stepped forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGive me that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I pulled it away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For years, I had believed our marriage ended because my husband fell in love with someone else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Maybe that had been only part of the story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark looked at Jordan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou told her the divorce was about Percy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan said nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou never told her about the financial accounts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Percy suddenly looked at Jordan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat accounts?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan’s jaw tightened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cClark, you don’t understand what you’re talking about.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark nodded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMaybe not everything.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then he looked at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut enough.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I felt dizzy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I looked down at the papers again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some of the transfers had been made to an account I didn’t recognize.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had spent months struggling financially after the divorce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had worried about paying bills, supporting the children, and keeping the house running.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meanwhile, Jordan had been moving money around without telling me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I looked at him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He finally spoke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBecause I was afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAfraid of what?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat you’d take everything.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I stared at him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEverything?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He looked away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou were entitled to part of the business.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I almost laughed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou cheated on me, left our family, and then tried to hide money because you were worried about what I might receive?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan didn’t answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Percy took a step backward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIs this why you told me the divorce was going to be simple?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan looked at her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI was going to handle it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou told me she wanted nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I suddenly understood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan hadn’t simply left our marriage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He had been trying to control what happened afterward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark reached into the box one final time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There was another envelope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He handed it to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis one is for you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I opened it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Inside was a letter from an attorney.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It explained that the financial records had been discovered during a review connected to the divorce proceedings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My attorney had apparently been trying to verify several inconsistencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But there was something else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The letter explained that the money had already been traced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And there was a court order requiring Jordan to account for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I looked up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhy do you have this?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark smiled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBecause I’m not just an actor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I froze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He looked at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe agency you contacted didn’t send me because I was available to play a boyfriend.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My mouth fell open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey sent me because I was already working with your legal team.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I stared at him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan suddenly stepped forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou set this up?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark shook his head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He looked at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShe hired an actor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then he looked at Jordan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou simply didn’t realize that the man standing beside her already knew about your financial situation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I couldn’t believe it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The entire fake-boyfriend plan had been something I created because I wanted Jordan to see that I was moving on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But the real reason Clark had been there was completely different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He had been gathering information for my attorney.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The pool party had accidentally become the place where everything came to light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan looked around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
People were staring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Percy was staring at him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even some of our neighbors had come outside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our son finally walked over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMom?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I immediately put the papers behind my back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt’s okay.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He looked at Jordan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDad, what’s happening?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan opened his mouth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nothing came out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I stepped between them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNothing you need to worry about tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My son nodded slowly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then he looked at Clark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAre you Mom’s boyfriend?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Everyone went silent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark looked at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I smiled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My son raised an eyebrow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cReally?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I laughed for the first time that afternoon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo. He’s an actor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My son looked at Clark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou’re an actor?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark nodded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cApparently.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My son laughed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat’s actually pretty cool.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The tension finally broke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A few people nearby smiled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even I couldn’t help laughing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan didn’t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He simply stood there holding the empty gift box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The same man who had laughed at me earlier now looked completely lost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Percy walked over to him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI need to talk to you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan looked at her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPercy\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She shook her head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou lied to me too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then she walked away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jordan watched her leave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For once, he had nothing clever to say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He looked at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI never meant for things to get this bad.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I stared at him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey got this bad because of your choices.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He lowered his head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I looked toward the pool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our son was laughing with his friends again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The music had started playing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The party was slowly returning to normal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And suddenly, I realized something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had spent weeks planning how to make Jordan jealous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had wanted him to see me standing beside another man and wonder whether he’d made a mistake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But I didn’t need that anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I didn’t need his jealousy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I didn’t need his approval.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And I certainly didn’t need him to regret leaving me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had something far more valuable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My children were happy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was rebuilding my life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And I had finally stopped measuring my worth by the way my ex-husband looked at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark walked over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo,\u201d he said, \u201cI guess the boyfriend assignment is officially over.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I smiled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think so.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He handed me the empty gift box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cKeep it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He shrugged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs a reminder.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOf what?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He looked toward Jordan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat sometimes the best revenge isn’t making someone jealous.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He smiled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt’s letting the truth speak for itself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I looked at the box in my hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a moment, I thought about the woman I had been months earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Heartbroken.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Angry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Convinced that I had somehow become less valuable because my husband had chosen someone else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then I looked at myself now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I wasn’t pretending anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I didn’t need an actor beside me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I didn’t need a perfect outfit, a dramatic entrance, or a jealous ex-husband.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I simply needed to remember who I was before someone else convinced me I wasn’t enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That evening, after everyone had gone home, my son came into the kitchen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMom?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYeah?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWas the fake boyfriend thing really necessary?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I smiled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cProbably not.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He laughed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut it was kind of funny.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I laughed too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then he hugged me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And for the first time in a very long time, I didn’t think about Jordan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I didn’t think about Percy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I didn’t think about the divorce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I didn’t think about revenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I simply stood there with my son, listening to the house slowly becoming quiet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And I realized the biggest surprise wasn’t what had been inside the gift box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was what had changed inside me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had spent so long wanting my ex-husband to understand my value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But I finally understood something much more important:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My value was never something he had the power to give me\u2014or take away.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Jordan’s smile disappeared the moment he looked inside the box. For several seconds, he didn’t say anything. He simply stared.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7868,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7869","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/benetv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7869","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/benetv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/benetv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/benetv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/benetv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7869"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/benetv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7869\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7870,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/benetv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7869\/revisions\/7870"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/benetv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7868"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/benetv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7869"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/benetv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7869"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/benetv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7869"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}