Chapter 20

“ALL men cheat.”

That statement rang into Amelia’s head and stayed there for a while, like an echo refusing to fade. She looked at Clara, chills running down her spine as her friend’s words sank deeper. Clara wasn’t joking, she wasn’t exaggerating, she sounded like a woman who had already resigned herself to a bitter truth.

“I mean,” Clara continued, leaning back on the chair and crossing her legs, “you are lucky Adrian respects you enough to hide his misdeeds.” She shifted upright, her tone sharper now. “But let me tell you this, can you believe that one of Leonard’s mistresses called me on the phone and told me to stop claiming what isn’t mine? Me, Amelia. Me.”

Amelia’s jaw dropped. She had that look on her face, a blend of shock and rising anger.

“What?”

“Yes,” Clara said with a short, bitter nod.

Just then, a sales rep walked over, balancing a stack of folded shirts.

“Madam, should we display the new Ankara gowns by the entrance or at th