My stomach knotted. “See what?”
“How far you’ve fallen.” Her gaze swept over me—my plain dress, my trembling fingers—before landing on my face. “Matthew used to call you his whole world. Now he can’t even be bothered to look at you.”
The words hit like glass splintering in my chest. “That’s not true.”
Claire’s laugh was soft and merciless. “Oh, Evelyn. I’m his confidante. The things he tells me… you’d break if you knew.”
I tried to move past her, but her hand shot out, nails biting into my wrist. She leaned close, her whisper hot and poisonous.
“Do you know why, after three years, you’re still childless?”
Ice flooded my veins.
“Because he doesn’t want one with you.” Her breath brushed my ear. “He told me himself—he can’t imagine tying himself to you like that. But with me? He dreams of legacy. Of an heir. My heir.”
I ripped my arm free, tears stinging my vision. “You’re lying.”
“Am I?” Her head tilted, smirk curling. “Why do you think he’s always working late? Why he never makes it home for anniversaries? He doesn’t love you, Evelyn. He loves me. And soon everyone will know it.”
Grief and rage collided inside me. Before I realized it, I shoved her.