Page 103 of From the Moment We Met

Victoria sent a sly glance, her lips curling in an evil smile. “That isn’t how this is going to work, Jacob. Either you play along completely, or you lose…completely.” She released a low, wicked chuckle. “You might as well comply. You’ve already lost Lilly. She knows what you are now, where your priorities lie. She’ll never take you back.”

Jacob’s body shook with the anger building inside him like a volcano. The worst part? Victoria was right. He’d blown his chance with Lilly. The future that he saw with his petite beauty went up in smoke as Victoria continued her erotic assault.

“So, what’s it going to be, Jacob?” Her tongue licked along his shaft, and Jacob groaned, pulling over to the side of the road so she could finish him off. If he couldn’t make love to the woman he cherished, he would fuck the woman who wouldn’t let him go.

∞∞∞

Lilly

“Iwant to go home,” Lilly sniffled, wiping her eyes. “I’ve never had anyone make me feel so insignificant, and Jacob didn’t say a word. He didn’t even try to defend me.”

A fresh batch of tears started, and Audrey wrapped her arms around Lilly. “I’m going to kill him.” She looked at her wife, and Janie nodded in agreement. “What a tosser.”

Janie knelt in front of Lilly, wiping her tears with a tissue. “There’s no excuse for what Jacob did, I’m sorry I even know him right now. And there’s certainly no excuse for what that harlot said to you. It isn’t true, not a word of it.”

Lilly smirked. “But it is the truth. I don’t fit into his world, and after seeing how people treat each other, I don’t want to. I’m fine being a nobody who cares about others and treats people with respect.”

Roger popped his head into the dressing room, a fresh glass of whiskey in his hand. “I can’t fix what my wanker friend and his she-devil did, but I can numb it for a while.”

“I think I’ll go home, thanks anyway,” Lilly said, refusing the glass.

Roger pressed it into her hand. “Like hell, you will. You’re our friend too, and I’ll be damned if he ruins that. Now come on, drink up, we can play some poker and talk trash about the blonde bimbo. She thinks she’s so gorgeous, but she looks like a damn piranha, has the teeth and everything.” He made a gnawing face, and Lilly laughed through her tears.

“He’s right, fuck ‘em both. Being happy is the greatest revenge,” Janie stated.

“Jacob is definitely not happy right now,” Roger interjected.

“Sure,” Lilly stated, sipping the whiskey. “He’s so unhappy that he dropped me like a bad habit and left with Victoria. Hell, he’s probably fucking her right now.” Janie and Roger exchanged a glance. “I know how men can be, no offense Roger, and I have enough male friends to know your libido doesn’t require love, especially when alcohol’s involved. I’m just another faceless name in his little black book now. I may be insignificant, but I’m not stupid.” Lilly looked down at her glass and whispered, “Actually, I guess I am stupid.”

Audrey scoffed. “You’re neither, and I don’t want to hear that kind of talk again. Come on girl, I’ll do a shot with you, and we can talk all kinds of trash.”

Lilly laughed, hugging Audrey. “Janie, your wife is amazing. How many people would bash their brother-in-law just to make someone feel better?” Her words brought much-needed laughter to the group as they walked back to the rec room.

∞∞∞

Although Lilly was still heartbroken and humiliated, things had improved in the last ninety minutes. It might have been the whiskey or the camaraderie of the folks around the poker table, but Lilly realized she might remain a member of the human race after all.

Edward turned out to be charming, appalled with what transpired. “I’ve never seen Victoria behave in such a manner. You didn’t deserve any of it. You behaved like a true lady.”

Lilly thanked him, opting to change the subject. “Could we not talk about either one of them for the rest of the evening and focus on the beautiful souls who are present?”

Roger raised his glass and toasted to her ‘brilliant idea’ when his phone started ringing. Looking down, he muttered, “His ears must be burning,” and excused himself.

“So much for that idea,” Lilly commented.

“Look, I know we agreed not to speak of—” Janie began.

“Those we will not mention?” Lilly filled in, eliciting a laugh from Edward.

“Exactly,” Janie commiserated, “but I know my brother and Lilly, I’ve never seen him look at a woman like he looks at you.”

Lilly swallowed around the lump in her throat, the tears threatening to fall once again. “It doesn’t matter. He made his choice, and it’s quite clear what my role is in his life. As Victoria stated, I was a temporary distraction until she was ready to return.”

“He doesn’t want to be with her—”

Lilly released a guffaw. “Sure as hell looked like he did when they left together.” She wiped her eyes, there seemed to be an endless supply of tears. “Thank you, all of you.”

“For what?” Audrey murmured.

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