Page 108 of Billion Dollar Revenge

Closing the door, I take a seat opposite her. Her back is ramrod straight, blonde hair tied up in a ponytail.

Her eyes are misty. I peer down at my empty hands that are open on top of the wooden table, taking a moment before looking back up to meet her pleading eyes.

“I need you to explain.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Lincoln. I thought-t he…” She exhales a shaky breath. “I thought he loved me.”

My nostrils flare. “And he doesn’t?”

I know he still loves Chelsea. And I hate the idea of anyone else having strong feelings for her. I’m still a mess trying to figure out what my feelings mean. All I know is right now I’m fucking miserable.

“No.”

“How do you know?”

A single tear leaks from her eye. “He told me I was just a fling.”

Standing, I grab a box of tissues from the console table and hand it to her.

“Thanks.”

She pats her face with the tissue.

I give her a moment before I ask the big questions.

“Did he tell you to post that particular...” I run my finger inside my collar, pulling on it until it feels like I can breathe. “Picture?”

“Yes.”

I drop my finger, and a heavy sigh leaves my chest. “Why would you do it?”

“I was pressured. He made it clear if I wanted to progress with our relationship, I needed to do this, or we were over.” More tears leak as she shakes her head vehemently.

“I’m losing my job, aren't I?” Her bottom lip wobbles.

“Yes.”

Her shoulders drop slightly.

“The few chats we’ve had, I was impressed?”

She brings her hands together and clasps them at her chest. “If you give me another chance, I promise...”

“No. Sorry, Shyla, but there’s no second chance. But I need to ask, are you still in contact with him?”

She shakes her head. “No.”

“Do you have a way of contacting him?”

“Yes. He has two phones.”

A fresh idea comes to me. “I need you to give me both numbers.”

She nods as new tears fall while pulling out her phone to find them, then she gives them to me. “I’m sorry I broke your trust.”

I should tell her that once you break my trust, there’s no way I’ll forgive you. And it hits me like a hammer to the heart. Chelsea has never done anything to hurt or break my trust. If anything, she has done the opposite. She only wants one thing in the future.

Can I get over my hang-ups to win her back?

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