Her only liquid assets were the jewelry, designer bags, and couture in the walk-in closet. Although she had a supplementary credit card, every transaction pinged his phone. She couldn't use it to build an escape fund.
This was why she'd had to borrow money for Simon's care.
Privately, Sara contacted trusted resellers and began liquidating the luxury goods she rarely used. She deposited the cash into an anonymous account in small batches.
Simon's recovery was complicated by heavy scarring; he would need future surgeries. Sara had to plan for their survival.
During those weeks, both she and Adrian were busy.
When Adrian came home, he bypassed the bedroom and went straight to the study. He seemed buried in an endless stream of video conferences and documents.
At first, Sara brought him coffee, trying to play the dutiful wife.
Eventually, she stopped. She would deliver the cup and retreat to her room.
His obsession with work was a coping mechanism. The last time he worked this hard was when he and Eva broke up.
He needed the noise of business to drown out his thoughts.
Sara didn't know what happened between them that night. But it was clear Eva was the only woman with the power to unravel him.
Other people couldn't earn his love.
Even earning his hatred was a luxury.
One afternoon, Sara entered the study with coffee as usual.
He didn't look up.
She turned to leave, her hand on the doorknob, when his voice stopped her.
"Change your clothes. You're coming with me."
It wasn't until they were on the road that Sara Navarro pieced it together: Adrian Harding hadn't planned this. Some friend had thrown together a last-minute gathering and begged him to grace them with his presence for a few drinks.
Strictly speaking, it wasn't a formal occasion. They were all from the same circle—the kind of people who ran into each other constantly, whether they liked it or not.
But everyone else had brought a female companion. Adrian, likely wanting to sidestep the unwanted advances of random gold diggers, had broken his usual precedent and dragged Sara along as a shield.
She didn't want to be there.
Adrian's friends were nothing like him. While Adrian might not respect her, he at least maintained a passable surface demeanor; he only made things difficult behind closed doors.
These rich, second-generation brats had no such class.