"You were right."
Emerald stared at him, her arms folded tightly across her chest. Her voice dropped. "Right about what?"
Rick's throat bobbed as he swallowed, then dropped his gaze for half a second before meeting her eyes again. "Everything."
Her heart thudded once, hard, but she didn't let it show. "I need specifics, Rick," she said coldly. "What exactly was I right about?"
He took a shaky breath. "About Alia. You were right. She lied. About… everything."
There it was.
She didn't flinch; she didn't blink; she just nodded once. "I know."
Rick's brows twitched. "You… wait, what?"
"I always knew. I told you back then. But you didn't want to hear it."
"I know," he muttered. "I didn't want to believe it. I thought…"
"That I was jealous? Vindictive?"
He didn't answer.
She waited a beat. "So how did you finally figure it out?"
