Page 76 of Viral Affair

Spencer Banks had handcuffed Laura to him, then announced to the whole world that he was in love with his nanny and wasn’t planning to resign. This had all happened so fast—my roommate was the luckiest woman in this world to have a man who was willing to risk the position of Prime Minister so he could win her back. This shit was so romantic, and I was all over it.

Around two weeks ago, I went back to the club because Matthews owed me a final payment and did not deposit it into my account. I’d suspected that he wanted to give me a proper farewell. I hadn't been there since I ended things with Rupert and I still had some personal items left in the locker that I needed to retrieve. All the girls I still kept in contact with told me that Rupert never went there anymore. I guessed that place reminded him of me.

Later, when I was leaving the club, I accidentally bumped into someone on the street.

“Sorry, I—” I began, then lifted my eyes to see who it was. My heart had stopped, and heat enveloped me.It was Rupert, and he looked so shocked to see me there.

I had to force myself not to give him a hug. My heart beat frantically. His eyes darkened. I’d made that happen. I’d caused him pain. Back at the warehouse, I hoped that he would hate me so he would never want to see me again.

“What are you doing here, Veronica?” he’d asked, his tone cold and detached. He looked so good, still had a great tan.

I died again, feeling as if someone had turned the knife in my chest, knowing that I could never ever touch him again.

“I had to get some things I left in the locker and I needed to see Matthews,” I’d explained, unable to look him in the eyes. That was not at all what I’d wanted to say, but I was a coward.

He just stared at me but said nothing. So many silent words passed between us, but none of us spoke. Life was so unfair.

I love you so much. Please give me another chance. I was a fool thinking that if I could live without you that I could protect you, but I can’t go on like this. I can’t live another day without you.

My soul screamed at me to say these words, but I couldn't. I had done the right thing pushing him away, claiming that this whole thing between us was a lie, even if it killed me and ripped my heart out.

In my mind, he responded with: "I love you too, but I can't trust you anymore Veronica.”

“Well then, have a good day,” he’d said before walking away from me.

Moments later, Chris pulled up and Rupert jumped to the car, never glancing back.

And then he was gone.

I thought I’d made the right choice.

But why did it feel so wrong?

Four weeks later

“Do you think this one or that one?” Laura asked, putting a long, fitted black dress against her body, then a shorter red.

She looked awesome in both, but I pointed to the black.

“We both know you can rock both, but you need to wear the black for dinner tonight,” I told her, drinking wine on Friday evening while she was having a mocktail. Laura had made a reservation at this fancy hotel for dinner last week and I was really looking forward to catching up with her. Apparently, the PM had been driving her crazy with his over-the-top protectiveness in the past month or so. For this reason, she needed a night off from him. Besides, it had been so long since we’d hung out, just the two of us anywhere, so her idea couldn't have come at a better moment.

“All right then, so let’s go. I’m starved and I’m so over Spencer’s paranoia with healthy eating while I’m pregnant. I swear to God, I’m going to strangle him this week if he mentions anything about broccoli again,” she said, picking up her purse.

I snorted in my glass of rosé, then emptied it. I was drinking way too much lately, but alcohol dulled the pain from my shattered heart. I’d lost myself completely, but there was nothing I could do. Rupert had moved on—I’d seen his picture in one of the magazines with another woman, a blonde one. Damn it.

“Come on then, preggo girlfriend,” I told her with a wink.

Around forty minutes later, we were seated in that swanky new restaurant in the newly opened Wellingsworth Boutique Hotel in the city, surrounded by a sea of couples. Her security detail was close by, watching us both and trying to blend into the swanky interior. A few people had shot glances at us because it was official. Laura was now engaged to the fucking Prime Minister of this country and was pregnant with his baby. Obviously people recognised her now, so we had to be on our best behaviour.

“Veronica, look at the menu. They have all the Italian food. I miss Sicily so much,” Laura stated, looking so excited.

She was eating so much lately, and I had no idea where she was even fitting all that in as she was still tiny in her first trimester. I suspected she wasn’t going to show until she was at least seven months along.

“I think you should order a bit of everything,” I suggested, almost inhaling the second margarita as she stared at me.

“Yes, I will, and I think you need to slow down a bit,“ she stated warily. “Are you all right, Veronica? You have been drinking a lot, I saw all the bottles in the rubbish outside. Rupert is miserable, too. Why don’t you talk to him?”

“Here we go again,” I muttered, suddenly losing my appetite. Putting the drink down, I took a long, deep breath. I knew this wasn’t Laura’s fault. I had been torturing myself like that for weeks, knowing I’d made a mistake. “I’m fine, and Rupert has clearly moved on. I saw a picture of him with a woman in one of the gossip magazines.”

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