I hung up, walked out the door, hailed a cab, and gave the driver Eustace's address.
I grabbed Sabina's luggage on my way out.
On the ride over, my phone buzzed nonstop. Texts from Sabina.
"I got a little worked up just now. I said some things I shouldn't have. Stephen, I'm sorry."
"How about this—I'll return the bracelet tomorrow, but you have to come to the wedding and be Eustace's best man."
"Think about it. We were supposed to get married, and then I suddenly got my marriage license with Eustace instead. That's not a good look for him."
"If you show up as the best man tomorrow, nobody will think Eustace came between us. And if anyone asks about us, just cover for me... Tell them you cheated, that you fell for someone else, that you'd been wanting to break up with me for a while. Just don't drag Eustace into it."
I stared at her messages and started laughing. The sheer absurdity of it pulled the laughter right out of me.
But somewhere in the middle of laughing, tears had soaked the hem of my coat.
The driver glanced at me in the rearview mirror and silently held out a tissue.
I thanked him quietly, opened the car door, grabbed the suitcase, and stormed upstairs.