Chapter 2 - The Audacity of a Broken CrownHeadline: "Get out of my room." The moment my husband realized his credit card was declined.
The silence that followed Grant's announcement was so heavy you could hear the waves crashing against the beach fourteen floors below.
Tom laughed, a short, nervous burst of sound. "This is a misunderstanding. Officer—manager—whoever you are. This is my wife. She’s having a moment. Sarah, stop this ridiculous charade right now."
"I am completely serious, Mr. Sterling," Grant said, stepping forward. "The primary cardholder and owner of the reservation, Mrs. Sarah Sterling, has requested your removal from this specific suite. If you do not comply, we will be forced to escort you off the property for trespassing."
"Trespassing?!" Chloe shrieked, jumping up from the ottoman. "Do you know who we are? My brother is a senior partner at his firm! We are paying customers!"
"Actually, Chloe," I interrupted, crossing my arms, "you aren't paying for anything. You haven't paid for a single thing since your brother married me. This entire vacation—the flights, the five-star rooms, the five-course dinners you already picked out on Instagram—is on my dime. And the bank just closed."
Judith’s face turned an ugly, mottled shade of red. She stood up, her expensive jewelry rattling against her wrists. "Sarah! How dare you humiliate us like this! In front of strangers? Tom, do something! Control your wife!"
"Sarah, outside. Now," Tom hissed, reaching out to grab my arm.
Before his fingers could even graze my sleeve, the larger of the two security guards stepped between us, his massive frame completely blocking Tom from my view. "Sir, keep your hands to yourself, or this conversation changes drastically."
Tom took a step back, his chest heaving with rage. He looked at me from behind the guard's shoulder, his eyes narrowed into slits. "You think you're smart, don't you? Fine. Keep your stupid penthouse. We’ll just check into our own rooms. Come on, Mom. Let's go down to the lobby and get a different suite. Let's see how much she enjoys sitting up here all by herself like a miserable old maid."
"Good luck with that, Tom," I called out as Chloe frantically began stuffing her designer clothes back into her open suitcase, her previous arrogance completely gone, replaced by frantic embarrassment.
"We don't need your luck," Tom sneered, pulling out his wallet. "I have my own money."
Ten minutes of chaotic packing later, the trio was marched out of the penthouse under the watchful eyes of the security detail. They looked small. They looked exposed. The guests in the hallway watched them with the exact same curious, pitying looks they had given me in the lobby just an hour before.
I walked out to the balcony, holding my glass of champagne, and watched the resort grounds below.
Twenty minutes later, my phone rang. It wasn't a text this time. It was a direct call from Tom. I answered it on the third ring, putting it on speaker.
"Sarah!" Tom’s voice was roaring through the speaker, completely stripped of its usual smooth veneer. "What did you do to my cards?"
"I didn't do anything to your cards, Tom," I said smoothly. "But if you're trying to book a room at a five-star resort on a Tuesday during peak season, you probably need more than a $5,000 limit on a personal credit card. Especially since I removed you as an authorized user on my corporate accounts before I came up to the room."
"You did what?" he gasped.
"The company belongs to my father and me, Tom. You were a user by courtesy. Courtesy has expired," I said. "How's the lobby looking from down there? Is it as comfortable as you remembered?"
"Sarah, listen to me," Tom pleaded, his voice dropping an octave, trying to play the desperate husband. "Mom is crying. Chloe is having a panic attack. We have nowhere to go. Every hotel within fifty miles is booked solid. You can't do this to us. We’re family."
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"Family doesn't leave family sitting among the baggage like trash, Tom," I said, and for the first time, a cold smile touched my lips. "Enjoy the night. I hear the lobby couch is very supportive."
I hung up before he could answer.
