Page 110 of Worth Every Game

“It’s going to be all right,” Kate says. “Nico probably has a hitman he can call.”

Nico straightens, shooting an alarmed look at us. “I’m not knocking off my best friend because he sent flowers.”

Kate laughs. “I meant forUser5498.”

For a second, everything is very quiet. “You’re joking, right?” I say, glancing between her and Nico.

“Of course she’s joking,” Nico says. “I’m in hotels. Not… that shit.” He waves his hand as though the suggestion is insanely farfetched, and although I laugh through my sniffles, part of me wonders if it really is that crazy… what would Nico do if someone had done this to Kate?

Before I can ponder it more, Kate pulls me into a hug again. “Don’t worry. Karma is a bitch. Whoever did this will get what’s coming to them, whatever happens. You spread bad shit in the world, it comes back to bite you. Always. Jack, on the other hand, is only spreading flowers. So… I’m hoping maybe you’ll talk to him?”

I give a brief nod. “When I’m ready, yes. Don’t pressure me.”

She gives me a sad smile. “Okay. Now…” She claps her hands together. “I’m going to see what we can do with all these bouquets.”

I bend down to inspect some roses, inhaling their scent.

“Jack also left these for you with the concierge downstairs,” Nico calls out to me.

I look over to see him dangling the Lamborghini keys from his fingers. Kate inhales a sharp gasp.

“Apparently you forgot your car,” he says, his voice as smooth as silk and his focus all on me, despite the fact that Kate is clearly exploding with questions. “It’s parked in the basement.”

Kate’s mouth goes wide before her hand flaps to cover it. “He bought you that car? The one you tried to buy?”

I scrunch my eyes closed for a second. “I can’t keep it, obviously. I can’t afford the insurance, and driving it terrifies me. I only have to tap it and it shoots off like a bullet.” An idea occurs to me, and I look back at Nico. “You don’t want to buy it, do you?”

He laughs. “That orange thing? God, no.” The amusement slides from his face as a thought occurs to him. “I know someone who would though.”

38

JACK

I’m sitting in my car, parked outside Nico’s apartment building. I know Elly’s up there, but Kate won’t let me inside.

She came over the day after Nico’s party to collect Elly’s things from my house. I hadn’t realised how little Elly owned, but the absence of it is painful. Everything is so fucking neat now. Aggressively tidy and organised. That would have calmed me in the past, but now it’s horribly jarring. Neat little reminders that Elly is gone.

I hate being at home when she isn’t there, which is why I’m here, waiting for any glimmer of hope that I’ll be forgiven. Elly hasn’t acknowledged the flowers or the car, and won’t answer any of my calls, all because of those damn photos. I wish I’d never taken them.

I scroll through my phone, searching for traces of the pictures. I loathe that the memories of the first time we made love have been ruined by them being blasted far and wide. I’ve got a team of people on it, hiding the links, reporting the users.With everything I’m doing, they’re getting harder to find, but they’restill there if you search hard enough, springing up like a game of Whac-A-Mole.

The profile of User5498 has been taken down, but not before the video montage of Elly’s photos gained millions of views. There wasnothing to identify the profile at all. It’s as though it was created with the sole purpose of attacking Elly. I’m determined to find the culprit, whoever they are.

There’s a tapping on the window, and I look up to find Kate staring in at me, gesturing with a rolling forefinger that I should unlock the doors, and when I do she gets in the passenger side.

She turns to me, her gaze at once hard and soft, as though she wants to tell me off and hug me at the same time. “You can’t stay out here.” She looks around the car, noticing my crumpled spare clothes in the back, the empty crisp packets and plastic water bottles littering the seats. “How long have you been in here?”

“Three days.”

“You’re sleeping in the car?” I shrug and Kate’s eyes fill with compassion. “Go home. Elly’s not coming down. She doesn’t want to see you. And I’m not letting you up.”

“I need to talk to her. Please.”

Kate sighs. “I should have known the two of you living together was a disaster waiting to happen. The photos, Jack. What were you thinking?”

I can’t listen to more recriminations about this. As if I haven’t spent every second beating myself up for this royal cock up. “I never meant—”

“Stop. I don’t actually want an explanation. I don’t care whose fault it was. Clearly, you were both losing your minds if you’d take photos like that on a mobile phone.” Kate covers her face briefly with her hands, as though this is all too much for her, and lets out a tiny, exasperated groan before she speaks again. “How did they get out? How did it happen? I’ve had your back on this. I’ve been telling Elly there’s no way you’d have done that to heron purpose. That you might be a ruthless businessman, but this isn’t some PR stunt where you’ve sacrificed her like a lamb to the slaughter in the name of her career. Please tell me you didn’t do that.”

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