# Chapter 15: Snowbound Hearts and a Kiss That Meant Too Much
Hello everyone, it’s me again! How are you all doing? Today I will continue to walk with you and review Chapter 15 of *Marriage on Madison Avenue*. So grab something warm—hot chocolate, tea, or maybe an Irish coffee with extra whipped cream—because this chapter is a cold-weather storm of awkwardness, jealousy, and one devastating kiss.
A week after their fight, Audrey and Clarke are still frozen solid. The ice between them has not thawed. Fittingly, their next encounter happens on a ski trip, surrounded by snow, and Audrey cannot help but notice the bitter irony. Erin Ratli, a society friend, invited Audrey and Clarke a while back, never realizing how complicated their relationship had become. Then someone else invited Clarke’s ex, Elizabeth Milsap. So now Audrey is trapped at a beautiful resort, pretending everything is fine while Clarke and Elizabeth are practically glued together.
Audrey tells Erin she is fine. She insists she and Clarke are adults, and she and Elizabeth are fine too. But a small, traitorous part of her brain knows that “fine” is doing a lot of heavy lifting. Especially when she sees Elizabeth swiping sunscreen onto Clarke’s nose, laughing, touching him with an ease that makes Audrey feel sick. Erin mutters that Elizabeth could at least be subtle. Audrey forces a smile and says they are all friends, even though she no longer knows what she and Clarke actually are.
The worst part is not just seeing them together. The worst part is that Audrey had been looking forward to this weekend. She had hoped it would be the opening she and Clarke needed to resolve their fight. When Erin picked her up at dawn, Audrey had practically skipped to the car, her stomach fluttering at the thought of seeing Clarke again. But the back seat was already full: Erin’s cousin Mike, Clarke, and Elizabeth. And Clarke barely looked at Audrey. They did not speak once.
Audrey watches as the group prepares to ski. Clarke hesitates near the lodge door. For one hopeful second, Audrey thinks he might walk over and finally address the weirdness between them. But then Elizabeth calls, “Clarke. You coming?” He stops, glances back at Audrey, then chooses the easy path. He grins at Elizabeth and walks outside without a backward glance. Audrey swallows the lump in her throat. It feels like they are not only done pretending to be engaged—they are done being friends. And that feels like it could kill her.
So Audrey claims a cozy chair by the window, orders hot chocolate with extra whipped cream, and tries to lose herself in a psychological thriller. Hours pass. She becomes so engrossed that she jumps when a man appears in front of her, apologizing for startling her. He is extremely attractive—tall, lean, with a dash of silver at his temples and smile lines that suggest a few years on her. He asks to sit because she has access to the only power outlet. She agrees, and he plugs in his laptop.
His name is Jarod Lanham. Audrey recognizes him immediately: the world’s most eligible billionaire, a self-made legend in Manhattan social circles, richer than Audrey’s and Clarke’s families combined, famously elusive in relationships, and even better looking in person than in magazines. He is charming, flirty in a harmless way, and respectful of the ring on her left hand. When he asks if her husband skis, she corrects him: fiancé. Clarke. And yes, he skis.
Jarod offers to take a photo of her for her Instagram. Audrey is an influencer, a lifestyle blogger who cannot go more than a day without posting. He takes several candid shots while she protests, laughs, and tells him her mouth is open in all of them. He says people like candid photos. She locks her phone instead of deleting them. It is hard not to be a little dazzled by Jarod Lanham, even if there is no electric current when their hands touch.
Then Clarke appears.
He looms over her, irritable and unsure, and introduces himself as Audrey’s fiancé. There is a possessive note in his voice that surprises Audrey, then irritates her. He does not get to act like a jealous jerk after the way he has been behaving. Jarod is unperturbed. Clarke recognizes the billionaire’s name and looks back at Audrey with a silent question they have exchanged a million times before: *Good-looking bachelor. Should I back off?* This time, there is vulnerability in his gaze too. And Audrey realizes she does not have an answer—for Clarke or for herself. The obvious move would be to announce the end of their fake engagement. She is clicking with an eligible man. Clarke is clearly enjoying Elizabeth’s company. Yet no part of her wants to take Clarke’s ring off her finger.
Clarke asks to excuse them. He leads Audrey into a quieter hallway. She gives him a fake smile and comments on his nose not being sunburned. He looks wary. She asks where Elizabeth is, mocking that Elizabeth must not want him running off to speak to his fiancée. Clarke snaps that his fiancée found someone else to chat up. Audrey laughs incredulously. She accuses him of ditching her to flirt with Elizabeth. He says he did not ditch her; they were invited to ski, and that is what he did. Then he strikes low: not his fault she prefers to sit around the lodge in tight pants and bat her eyelashes.
Audrey is stung. She stares at him, then tells him she cannot figure out what he is worse at these days—playing fiancé or actually being a friend. Clarke flinches. She knows the jab hit home, and she is glad. Something needs to wake him up. She gentles her voice and tells him that if he wants to publicly announce they have ended things so he can get back together with Elizabeth, he should just say so. He is her friend. She will be happy for him, no matter what.
But Clarke throws her own words back at her: she is the one who said she wanted to call it off. Just in time, too, he adds, nodding toward Jarod. Audrey throws up her hands. She gives up. She tells him she does not know what is going on with him, but he will have to work through it without her. This version of Clarke is not her best friend. She tells him to let her know when he wants an actual conversation and wants to go back to being Clarke and Audrey, because this—whatever this is—is not working for her.
She tries to brush past him. He grabs her hand, just like he did outside Naomi and Oliver’s. She looks down at their joined hands, then up at him. He is scowling, frustrated. She asks what. He says nothing. She tries to tug away; he tightens his grip. Then his expression shifts into something she has never seen before. He pulls her slowly, purposefully toward him. His head dips. His lips brush over hers.
Audrey exhales at the unexpected kiss, then gasps as his free hand cups the nape of her neck and pulls her fully against him. His mouth slants over hers. She keeps thinking she should be used to the jolt of their faux kisses, but this is the third one, and she feels more confused every time. Confused about why he tastes so good, why his lips against hers feel like a missing piece of her life. Her hands lift to his chest, fingers gripping his shirt, pulling him closer. He goes still, as if surprised she is responding. Then he wraps an arm low across her back until they are pressed together, hips to hips, belly to belly, mouth to mouth.
Her lips part, and Clarke takes full advantage. His tongue brushes against hers, and the sensation travels all the way down to her toes. He nudges her backward against the wall, never breaking the kiss, tilting her head back farther, demanding more. Demanding everything. Her hands slide up his chest, fingers tangling in his hair, and she whispers his name.
The second she does, Clarke’s head snaps up. His eyes lock on hers, smoldering, before he abruptly steps back. They are both breathing hard, but only Audrey seems disoriented. Clarke looks unaffected, as though it had been just another playful, just-for-show kiss. As though nothing had changed. Then he turns his head and glances down the hallway. Audrey follows his gaze, and her heart drops.
Elizabeth is standing there, staring at them with a stricken expression. Then she turns on the heel of her ski boot and marches back into the lodge.
Audrey closes her eyes, queasy. The kiss had been for show after all. Clarke had known Elizabeth was watching. He had been kissing Audrey as part of their game—while Audrey had been kissing him for real. She cannot even finish the thought. She forces a bright smile, gives a brief slow clap, and congratulates Clarke on a hell of a show. She says she is sure Elizabeth definitely got the message this time.
Then she turns back, angry now. She asks him what message he is trying to convey. What role is she playing here? Clarke pushes his thumbs against his eyes and says he does not know. He does not fucking know. Audrey replies in a light, brittle tone: “Right, well. Let me know when you figure it out.”
And with that, she walks away—leaving Clarke in the hallway, Elizabeth in the lodge, and the truth of their fake engagement more tangled than ever.
**Reader’s Impressions & Star Rating:**
This chapter is a beautiful, painful mess in the best way. Audrey’s loneliness is palpable, especially when she realizes Clarke no longer chooses her as his safe person. The ski trip setting is perfect—cold outside, colder between them, and yet the kiss burns through everything. Jarod Lanham adds a fascinating new energy, a charming distraction that also exposes Audrey’s unresolved feelings. Clarke’s possessiveness and confusion are frustrating, but they feel painfully human. The final kiss is devastating because Audrey feels it for real while Clarke may have been performing for Elizabeth. That moment broke my heart. The chapter balances social awkwardness, romantic tension, and emotional whiplash with sharp dialogue and vivid scenes. It is one of those chapters you finish with your hand over your mouth, needing the next one immediately.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 4.8 / 5 Stars
**Next Chapter Prediction:**
The fallout from that hallway kiss is going to be explosive. Elizabeth has clearly seen enough to be hurt and angry, and she may confront Clarke or Audrey directly. Audrey will likely pull away from Clarke, embarrassed and furious that she let herself respond while he was putting on a show. Jarod may continue to be a tempting, easy presence, which will only make Clarke more jealous and confused. But the real reckoning is coming: Clarke will have to admit why he kissed Audrey, why he cannot let her go, and what he truly wants. I predict a confrontation where the fake engagement finally falls apart in public—or a private moment where Clarke stops hiding behind the game and tells Audrey the truth. Either way, Audrey is not going to make it easy for him. She has been patient, but her heart is on the line now.
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