Page 58 of He Falls First

My voice has risen sharply. Hendrix glances toward the closed door, like he’s worried someone will overhear.

Good. I want him to squirm. To feel the same discomfort he’s put me through with his lies.

“I’m confused.” I shake my head. “Our arrangement was so you could play family man to the board. But clearly you’ve got that covered with Gabrielle and Harper. So what am I for? Just to show off that you can land some young assistant?”

Hendrix’s face goes from shock to anger in the span of a heartbeat. “My real family is none of your damn business, Elizabeth,” he snaps, his green eyes narrowing.

I flinch. “Real family?”

Ouch. That distinction hurts more than I want to admit. If what he has with them is real, then with me it’s just… what? An act? I’m nothing but a placeholder, a stand-in for his real family.

Tears burn my eyes. How could I let him make me feel so foolish? So naïve?

“You’re despicable,” I choke out. “A liar and a fraud.”

I swipe angrily at the tears streaming down my cheeks, mortified that I’m crying in front of him. I take a shaky breath, trying to regain what little composure I have left.

“Elizabeth, wait—” Hendrix starts.

But I’m already gone. I refuse to look back at him as I flee from the office. From Hendrix and his web of lies.

Chapter 23

Elizabeth

Cora’s apartment is usually the quiet kind of place where you can get instantly comfortable, curl up with a book and a glass of wine, and forget about the cares of the outside world. But tonight, all I want to do is collapse onto her couch and cry my eyes out.

Hendrix’s betrayal stings.

My eyes burn as I stare down at the crumpled tissue in my hand. I keep thinking about the moment he lied: “No one came by.” Four little words to instantly show me that I can’t trust him to tell me the truth.

“Lizzy?” Allison’s voice is gentle. She and Cora sit on either side of me on the couch. “What happened?”

I take a shaky breath. “Hendrix lied to me. He told me he was alone at the office today, but I saw Gabrielle and Harper leaving just after my lunch meeting. He’s clearly hiding something. I… I think he might be Harper’s dad. And Gabrielle’s probably the woman he really wants to be with, while he plays pretend with me. I don’t know. I don’t think I want to know.”

Cora smooths my hair back from my face. “Oh, honey. I’m so sorry.”

The tears well up again, and I press the tissue to my eyes. “I just feel so stupid. I violated my pledge. Let myself catch feelings for him—and this isn’t even a real relationship.”

It’s not long before Allison’s fed up with my wallowing. Or at least, with watching me suffer.

“That’s it,” she says. “We’re going out tonight. You were making so much progress on feeling good about yourself. I saw it. Now you need a night to remember who you are.”

I shake my head, sniffling. Going out is the last thing I want to do right now. “No, I just want to stay in and mope. Pajamas. Ice cream. The whole deal.”

I’ve already eaten the rest of my cheesecake, but that doesn’t mean there’s not room for ice cream.

“Liz, that’s what the old you would do,” Cora reminds me gently. “The new Elizabeth, the one who took the ‘He Falls First’ pledge, would go out and forget about the guy who’s breaking her heart.”

Allison nods. “Come on. One night out with us and you’ll be saying, ‘Hendrix who?’”

After a moment, I wipe away the remaining tears and nod. They’re right. I don’t know how I’ll ever get my mind off Hendrix, and I doubt this will be a quick fix, but I at least I have to try. Truth be told, I’m a little scared of losing the new me after this blow. I always knew a break-up with Hendrix was coming, and I need to get through this in a way that keeps me on my feet. I need a chance to reconnect with myself. A chance to be the Elizabeth I want to be, not the one Hendrix tried to mold me into.

“Okay. Let’s go out.”

Allison grins and hugs me. “Thatta girl. We’ll find you a sexy outfit and remind the whole male population that Elizabeth Summers is a catch.”

I manage a small smile. This isn’t about the male population, though. It’s about me. Tonight, I take back my power.

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