Guy hunched his shoulders and slapped a hand over his mouth in mock alarm.
"Boys help boys! Fine, fine, I'll stop."
Dora seized my arm and yanked me back, her grip bruising. She stepped between us—positioning herself in front of Guy, shielding him behind her.
"Enough. You're a grown man. Why are you picking fights with some kid fresh out of college?"
Something in my chest seized. I stared at her—the woman I'd loved for a decade—unable to believe what I'd just heard.
She realized it a beat too late. Her red lips pressed together, but she didn't take it back.
Guy, meanwhile, played the wounded party to perfection. His eyes reddened, his voice small and pitiful.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have butted in."
"I'm sure now that Ms. Fox is so successful, brother-in-law won't need to return to his old line of work."
"Let's just say I got the wrong person..."
The guests who had come to offer congratulations now regarded me with undisguised contempt.
Hands rose to cover smirking mouths. Heads bent together, whispers hissing back and forth.
Some pulled out their phones, already searching for my alleged "content."