Noon Friday, July 7th, 2023 Jia. She was the solitary hidden sniper who held up the whole campaign at the beachhead. If she rejected him, Garin would severely doubt himself. He might take it for the hint he needed that in the expanse of time since he won Lyrou, he’d lost it, he no longer appealed to women in that way. It might hurt his ego so badly that he’d fear being rejected again, too much to retry his luck the next d...

Noon Wednesday, July 5th, 2023 The glass exterior of the building, the cold minimalist plaza entry, and the low hum of office activity weren’t unlike Garin’s office, or the offices she worked in over a decade ago. Lyrou sat in the sleek reception of Barbara Geithner’s law office in downtown Fort Lee, her hands clasped tightly in her lap. Her face was heavy and puffy, and she wore a weary numbness. When the secretary calle...

Evening Tuesday, July 4th, 2023 Inside and approaching midnight, the TV was muted as a news talk program aired, covering shots of July 4th fireworks. Garin called her, “Lyrou... are you on the balcony still? Come sit with me a moment.” Lyrou walked in with a warm smile, wiping her hands on a kitchen towel and tossing it in a laundry basket sitting by the basement door. She sat down next to Garin, the scent of fireworks fa...

Monday June 19th, 2023 Lyrou and Garin had been married for 13 years, and they had two children together. Garin toiled invaluably, or was it to her indispensably, from his well-earned corner office in downtown Jersey City. He spent his weekdays, some weeknights, and some weekends gaining and sustaining clientele for a powerhouse corporation one degree from the top. Dapper, lean, active, a touch knightly or chevalier-faced...