Ethan looked toward the window.
“I know.”
“Just do not let everyone else’s panic turn into your deadline.”
Ethan swallowed.
“Thanks.”
The sandwich arrived ten minutes later.
Ethan ate half of it without tasting anything.
At three thirty, Samantha called.
He let it ring.
She called again.
He let that ring too.
Then a message appeared.
Dylan is at the house.
Ethan stood.
A second message arrived.
I did not invite him.
A third followed immediately.
He says he needs to talk to both of us.
Ethan called Samantha.
She answered before the first ring completed.
“Do not come here angry,” she said.
“I am not coming there.”
There was silence.
“What?”
“I said I am not coming.”
“Ethan, he is standing in our driveway.”
“Call the police if he refuses to leave.”
“He is not threatening me.”
“Then tell him to leave.”
“He says the lawyer contacted him.”
“That was fast.”
Samantha lowered her voice.
“What did you have Laura send?”
“A preservation letter.”
“You sent a legal notice to Dylan?”
“Yes.”
“He is furious.”
“That sounds like his problem.”
“Ethan, please.”
“No.”
“You need to hear what he is saying.”
“I heard him at five forty this morning.”
“He is saying something different now.”
Ethan’s stomach tightened.
“What is he saying?”
Samantha did not answer immediately.
“He says the money was not a loan.”
Ethan sat down again.
“What does he say it was?”
“He says I invested in the studio.”
Ethan closed his eyes.
“Did you?”
Samantha began crying.
“Not exactly.”
The phrase made Ethan feel suddenly calm again.
“What does not exactly mean?”
“I told him I might.”
“That is not what I asked.”
“He gave me a percentage on paper.”
Ethan opened his laptop.
“What percentage?”
“Ten.”
“Ten percent of what company?”
“Northline Performance Lab.”
“Did you sign anything?”
Samantha was silent.
“Samantha.”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“June.”
Ethan stared at the date on his laptop screen even though he already knew the month.
June was four months before the hotel.
June was the month of their anniversary dinner.
June was when Samantha kissed him in a restaurant parking lot and told him they were okay.
“How much did you agree to invest?” he asked.
“Twenty-five thousand.”
Ethan felt the room tilt slightly.
“You agreed to invest twenty-five thousand dollars without telling me.”
“I thought I could cover it from my bonus and savings.”
“You transferred almost twelve.”
“I know.”
“Where was the rest supposed to come from?”
Samantha did not answer.
“The home equity line?” Ethan asked.
She started crying harder.
