Chapter 1
Chapter 1
I sent my boyfriend a quick text: “What are you up to?”
Matthew immediately wrote back: “Just cleaning the apartment.”
He followed up with a photo.
Our familiar living room looked immaculate, sunlight streaming through the spotless windows.
What he didn’t know was that I’d already pulled up our home security feed.
He wasn’t lying – there he was, bustling around with a vacuum cleaner.
Then my blood ran cold.
If that was Matthew on the security camera…
Who was this identical “Matthew” standing right in front of me?
Two identical men.
One name.
And no logical explanation.
I spotted the other “Matthew” just as I was stepping out of the glass doors of Wallace & Porter, where I worked as a marketing director.
The late afternoon sun cast long shadows across the busy street, and there he was – or at least, someone who looked exactly like him – heading into a trendy coffee shop with a group of friends.
Something felt terribly wrong. Matthew had specifically told me he’d be home all day, catching up on housework and decluttering. He’d even made a point of canceling our lunch plans because of it.
Just as I was about to call out to him, my WhatsApp lit up with a message.
Matthew: “Hey babe, found some expired stuff in the fridge. OK to toss it?”
My heart racing, I typed back: “Right now?”
“Yeah, why? Something wrong?” He even added a photo of our fridge’s interior, showing his hand pointing at some old containers.
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Chapter 1
I glanced up at the Matthew in the coffee shop, then back at my phone.
Through the cafe’s large windows, I could see him clearly same height, same broad shoulders, same way of running his hand through his dark hair.
He was wearing the blue button–down shirt I’d given Matthew for his birthday last month.
That’s when I sent the message asking what he was doing. The pieces weren’t fitting together.
The security camera showed Matthew at home, cleaning,
WhatsApp showed him actively messaging me.
Yet here was another Matthew, looking completely at case with his friends.
Only one could be the real Matthew.
I adjusted my sunglasses and slipped into the coffee shop, choosing a quiet corner table partially hidden by a large potted plant. The group’s laughter carried across the room, and then I heard something that made my blood freeze.
“Matt, how long are you planning to mess with Emma like this? The poor girl has no idea, does she?”
I gripped my phone tighter, my knuckles turning white. What exactly didn’t I know?
