Kim Boudreaux gazed at the crowd gathered in the Stade de France. What was expected to be her moment of triumph had instead turned to ashes. Once thought the odds-on favorite to take the gold, she had instead barely qualified, her first attempt ending in humiliation with a beginner's mistake.
And then, before her second attempt, she felt a wave of nausea overwhelm her, and she raced to the restroom to throw up. Kim could not remember a time that she had such a case of nerves, but then again, she had only faced public ridicule one other time, and that had led to her being violently sick as she sobbed in her mother's arms. God, was it only six weeks ago?
First, her fiancée had left her at the altar, leaving her mortified parents to explain to everyone that the wedding was off. But the word spread quickly after guests heard Cam's best man explaining to Cam's mother and Kim's parents why Cam was calling off the marriage. Cam's father unwittingly chose that moment to take his seat next to his wife. Sugar Logan slapped Mitch so hard he was knocked to his knees. Kim's parents had gone in search of their daughter, and Sugar had stormed out of the rented mansion.
And the aftermath.
Ghosted.
No calls. No texts. No IG or Snap. Not even a Facebook message.
Their plan had been marriage, Olympics, honeymoon, Bar Exam, and then Kim finishing medical school. But that didn't happen. Instead, Cam took the bar exam as soon as it was offered and, with little preparation, passed. That was the last news she heard about Cam because as word spread, their mutual friends cut her out of their lives. Well, not all of their mutuals. A couple of Cam's frat brothers tried to get with her. Ugh.
Cam's father, Mitch, came out of the mess in even worse shape. His wife was divorcing him, and their divorce was a major topic of discussion in Dallas society. Mitch's company had been started by his father-in-law forty years ago, so Cam's mother was the actual owner of the business. Mitch had been fired, and Sugar's divorce attorney had frozen all their marital assets and canceled corporate and joint credit cards. Mitch was currently living in an extended-stay hotel and drinking way too much. He had drunkenly called Kim several times, begging to see her. Kim met with Mitch once, a mistake she vowed she would not repeat. From then on, she declined his calls, but he seemed to be getting more unhinged, so she would probably have to get a restraining order when she got home.
