Page 61 of Forever Fake

I spin around to face Eion. “Like hell he is.”

Eion rises from his chair, standing eye to eye with me and I read the determination in his gaze. “Franklin thought he could touch Lexa. He’s a dead man.”

“Lexa isn’t yours to avenge.”

“She will be.”

“Over my dead body.”

“If you insist, Baron. In the meantime, I’m going to tear Franklin apart piece by piece and you can read all about it in the papers. I’m sure theBig Apple Buzzwon’t stop reporting on it for weeks. That tabloid can never resist when I throw them a nice juicy story.”

“Fine, you can have Franklin, but release Lexa when she’s ready to come home. She can come live with me to get away from Yve.”

“I’m not a fucking monster, Baron. I’d never hold Lexa against her will. As soon as she has her shit together she’ll leave, like she always does.”

“What do you mean?” I pin him with a glare. Has Lexa turned to him for help before? How do I not know about this?

“When she calls, I drop everything for her.”

Like hell he does.

“How do you two even know each other?”

A grin touches his lips. “That’s one secret I’ll never divulge.”

“Fuck you, Bane.”

“Right back at you, Baron.”

Turning on my heel, I get the fuck out of his office. I can’t stand to be in his presence for a moment longer than necessary. At least Lexa’s safe. I hate the fact that I know Eion Bane well enough to know his word is solid. If he says she’s okay, then that’s the truth. He’s a virtuous fuck in that regard.

Late that night, I’m in my home office scrolling through the dark web’s job postings–nothing of interest–and sifting through what my little birdies have to say. The priority list of information includes a photo of Yve and Franklin fucking, I could have done without seeing that, as well as a flurry of gossip about Lexa’s wedding gone awry.

So much for having the ceremony at an undisclosed location. Someone on that island followed all of us quite closely, and the rumors and photos have spread like wildfire.

There’s even a picture of me with Ginevra, along with a theory that she has, in fact, finally snagged the most eligible bachelor in New York State. Apparently our demeanor with each other is far too intimate to be fake.

I smile at that assumption.

I’m always amused when my birdies end up sending me gossip about myself. This happens because not every source knows that it’s me they are reporting to. All they know is that if they submit information, they get bitcoin. Everything about the process is anonymous.

Hell, I’ve heard rumors that my form sends the information to theBig Apple Buzz. False, of course. I’d never help those lowlife so-called reporters with anything, especially not when it comes to divulging tidbits from my precious stash of secrets.

CHAPTER 28

Ginevra

“Happy birthday, baby,” Blake murmurs in my ear, and I groan, smashing the pillow to the side of my head. “Don’t hide from me. I’m waking you up to give you your first birthday gift.”

Gift? Did he say gift? I squint… seeing only darkness. Not a shred of light illuminates our bedroom.

“What time is it?” I roll onto my back.

Blake stands beside the bed, his outline visible as my eyes adjust to the dimness. He’s fully dressed, though he kicks off his shoes and loosens his tie. “It’s four in the morning. I can’t wait any longer to start celebrating your birthday.”

“Blake,” I whine, torn between going back to sleep and curious about why he’s so impatient. Most of this week he’s been coming to bed with me, instead of staying up until the early morning hours, except for tonight. He said he had work to catch up on, so I went to bed, knowing he’d join me later. But he’s always careful not to wake me up when he finally turns in.

I squeak in surprise when his body weight dips the bed and he extends my arms above my head, fastening them together with what I believe is his silk tie. Suddenly, I’m fully alert, my heart rate spiking.

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