Chapter 22. Breathtaking Surprise

Elena’s POV

Mark released my wrist so fast you’d think I’d burned him. He stepped back, smoothing his shirt with exaggerated casualness.

“It’s nothing.” He wouldn’t meet my eyes—or Bella’s.

Bella stood in the doorway, her brow furrowed, her gaze bouncing between us like a tennis ball. The clutch hung forgotten in her hand.

“Nothing?” Her voice sharpened. “You were gripping her wrist like you were about to—” She stopped, clearly unsure how to finish that sentence.

My heart plummeted. If Bella put the pieces together—if she connected Mark and me, if she realized I was the woman he’d discarded—everything would shatter. I opened my mouth, desperate to say something, anything—

But Bella’s next words knocked the breath from my lungs.

“Are you still angry at her about the Thompson Crest promotion?” She crossed her arms, her expression shifting from confusion to exasperation. “That was Eric’s decision, Mark. Not hers. You can’t blame Elena fo