May 2.
Dylan described the studio trouble.
May 9.
Samantha met him for coffee.
May 13.
She told Clare about the meeting and described it as harmless.
May 24.
Samantha sent Dylan financial spreadsheets she made from numbers he provided.
June 3.
She signed the ten percent investment agreement.
June 5.
She transferred the first payment.
June 14.
She and Ethan celebrated their anniversary.
Next to that date, Samantha had written three sentences.
Ethan gave me the bracelet.
He asked whether I was happy.
I said yes because telling the truth would have forced me to stop what I was doing.
Ethan stopped reading.
He removed his glasses and pressed his palms to his eyes.
The anniversary memory hurt differently now.
Not because the dinner had been fake.
He believed Samantha had enjoyed it.
That was worse in a way.
People could hold tenderness and deception at the same time.
The existence of one did not erase the other.
He resumed reading.
June 22.
Dylan and Samantha met for drinks.
They sat in his car afterward.
They kissed once.
Ethan stopped again.
Dylan had not told him about the kiss.
Samantha had not mentioned it on the phone.
The timeline continued.
She wrote that she pulled away and cried afterward.
She told Dylan it could not happen again.
Then she messaged him the next morning.
July 1.
She transferred more money.
July 7.
She told Dylan Ethan knew about the investment.
July 18.
Dylan asked whether she was leaving Ethan.
She said she did not know.
July 29.
She told Clare that Ethan would never leave because he hated instability.
August 4.
She started the home equity application.
She stopped when the portal requested additional spouse information.
August 5.
She told Dylan the financing option would not work.
August 12.
She and Dylan argued.
He accused her of using him.
August 20.
They stopped speaking for six days.
August 26.
Samantha contacted him again.
September 3.
She transferred the last significant payment.
September 14.
Dylan told her he had found another possible location.
September 27.
They had dinner.
They kissed again.
October 2.
Samantha told Clare she sometimes wished Ethan would discover the messages so she would be forced to choose.
Ethan stared at that line for a long time.
October 8.
Dylan asked Samantha to stop contacting him unless she was prepared to make a decision.
October 10.
She reserved a room at the Asheford Hotel for October 16.
Six days in advance.
Ethan felt cold.
She had not reserved the room impulsively on the way to dinner.
She had planned it nearly a week earlier.
October 14.
She asked Clare whether she would cover if Ethan called.
