“Not yet, and I’d like to keep it thatway.”
He linked his hand with mine and gave it agentle tug. Reluctantly, I scooted forward. When I was close enough, his handsneaked around my waist and he pulled me flush against his chest, resting hishead on top of mine as I discreetly breathed in his scent.
His long sigh sounded like he was relieved.
“I don’t know how I’m going to make youbelieve me, Olive, but I hope you will. While I was sleeping it off, Devlinquestioned his entire staff, but other than that one drink, I didn’t haveanything. No one could’ve slipped anything into my drink because the bartenderprepared it in the room, you saw it yourself.”
Somewhere in the house, someone opened adoor and we fell silent, our bodies tense with the interruption. A few secondslater, the bathroom door opened and closed.
When the coast was clear again, hecontinued, talking in hushed tones. “I took Alvin with me and went to yourapartment to look for Lucy, but she wasn’t there. When I found Lily instead, Ikinda lost it. I might have scared her a little, but it was worth it becauseshe admitted to messing with my drink with Charlotte. According to Lily, it wasCharlotte’s idea to take pictures of me to leak to the press. I don’t know howmuch of it is a lie, but that was what she was going with.”
I hadn’t even realized I was crying untilJason lifted his hand to softly wipe away my tears.
“As if they hadn’t done enough damage, oneof them also called the tabloids as an anonymous source to say that ourmarriage was fake.”
Bewildered, I shook my head. “It couldn’tbe Lily. I don’t even know her all that well. But I swear to you, I didn’t tellCharlotte either. Only Lucy knows.”
“It’s okay sweetheart, it doesn’t matter.Megan pulled some strings and they won’t take the tip seriously.” His lipstouched my forehead and instead of pulling back, he stayed just like that.
“I brought your phone with me. Why don’t wecall Lucy and you can hear it from her, too,” he whispered.
Reaching behind, he took something out ofhis back pocket and handed it to me. My phone. I barely had any battery left.
I dialed Lucy’s number.
“Lucy? Hi.”
“Hey, babe. How are you holding up?”
“Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that?How is Jameson?” I tried to talk as quietly as possible.
“He is awake now. He is already making mylife miserable. Frankly, I’m more worried about you right now. You promised youwould call me when you made it home.”
“Yeah, I’m sorry. When I saw my dad, Ijust…”
“It’s okay, Olive, I understand. I’massuming lover boy made it there and that’s why you are calling.”
My lips twitched, but that was all I couldmanage.
“I don’t know exactly what he told you, buthe is telling the truth, my little green Olive. I talked to Charlotte a fewhours ago, or more like fought with her. The night I brought you to theapartment and Marcus carried you away to his room, well, that’s apparently whenshe realized Marcus would drop her like a hot potato the moment you wanted toget back with him. I think that’s why she told you that she’d been with Marcuswhile you guys were still together. If you ask me, I have my doubts about thatafter everything that’s happened since yesterday.”
The more Lucy talked, the more confused Iwas getting. Messing with someone’s drink was a whole different ball game thenjust cheating, or made up cheating, or whatever. Heck, where had she even founda pill that would mess Jason up like that?
“My take is that she told you about thecheating so you wouldn’t go back to Marcus, and she messed with Jason so youcouldn’t have him either. The worst of it is she made it sound like she did youa favor because it was ‘bound to happen anyway’. The bitch has no idea Jason isin love with you.”
“You are the only one who thinks that.”
“Oh please, it’s only you who doesn’t thinkthat.”
“My battery is dying, I have to go, Lucy.Can I call you tomorrow?”
She made a sound that clearly meant she wasannoyed with me. “Fine. I’ll call you later. Don’t be stupid about this, Olive.You better have good news for me tomorrow. And try to ask him what he thinksabout adopting me. He is even hotter when he is fuming. Be a good friend foronce and ask him.”
She hung up while I was still shaking myhead.
I pushed my phone under the pillow.
“So?” Jason asked into the silence. “Do youbelieve me?”