Love’s Bitter Pill

It was obvious at a glance that her caption was designed to show off.

I quietly liked the post, then clicked on Beverly’s profile picture. It was a cartoon character.

Charles’ profile picture, on the other hand, was a matching couple’s avatar of the same cartoon.

I had once suggested to Charles that we use matching profile pictures, too. However, he’d laughed at the idea.

“Sarah, can you not be so childish? I have zero interest in stuff like that.

“And besides, if I did something that dumb, what would my employees think?”

Now, for his assistant Beverly, he was doing all the things he once dismissed as “childish.”

I was so tired.

After thinking it over for a long time, I finally dialed Sullivan Group, which had always wanted to poach me to them.

“Mr. Sullivan, I’ve made up my mind. I’m ready to join your company.”

Garrett Sullivan, on the other end, was surprised to hear my voice.

“Miss Keenan! Are you saying you’re ready to come on board as our Chief Designer?”

I responded with a wry smile.

“I wouldn’t go that far. I just hope you don’t think I’m a burden.”

“Not at all! Our company has always admired your talent.”

Charles didn’t come home until the next morning.

When he finally showed up, he surprised me with an unusual suggestion: to take me to a long-anticipated exhibition.

“Hey, I got the tickets. Let’s go.”

In the past, I would’ve been ecstatic. Now, though, I couldn’t muster much interest.

Still, I didn’t want to waste the opportunity to learn something new, so I forced myself to agree.

When we got to Charles’ car, I instinctively reached for the front passenger door, only to be stopped by him.

“Sarah, get in the backseat. Bev doesn’t like it when someone else sits up front.”

So, I climbed into the backseat.

The front passenger seat was covered in pink cushions and adorned with a cartoon nameplate.

“Princess Bev’s Special Seat,” it wrote.

I hadn’t eaten anything before we left, and my stomach was already unsettled. To make things worse, the car reeked of Beverly’s favorite rose-scented air freshener—a smell I couldn’t stand.

I tried to ignore it, but eventually, I couldn’t help gagging.

I asked Charles to drive slower, but it only seemed to egg him on. He pressed the gas pedal harder.

Gritting my teeth and fighting the nausea, I grabbed a trash bag from the car and quietly retched into it.

When I looked up, Charles was glaring at me with an expression of pure disgust.

“Sarah, you know Bev has to get in this car later. Now you’ve made it smell disgusting. Are you trying to ruin her day on purpose?”

I clutched the edge of my shirt tightly.

“I can’t stand the scent of that air freshener.”

His face darkened even further.

“That air freshener is Bev’s favorite. So, tell me, is it really the smell you can’t stand? Or is it Bev?

“If you’re trying to pull another one of your sympathy stunts, don’t bother. It won’t work on me. You’re only making me hate you more.

“Get out. I don’t want Bev getting in and complaining about the smell. You can catch a cab. I’ll text you the location.”

Without another word, I climbed out of the car.

The moment I shut the door, he hit the gas and sped off, leaving me alone on the empty roadside.

I checked the location he sent me. Thankfully, it wasn’t far.

However, it still took me over an hour of walking. I was alone, exhausted, and nearly collapsing from fatigue before I finally arrived at the hotel where the exhibition was being held.