Page 74 of Closer

“Let him be my problem. Okay?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

She kisses my cheek, patting my shoulder. “Now, finish your plate. You barely ate anything.” My mother gestures to someone across the room.

To my surprise, Ju appears, sauntering over with her head held low. What the fuck is going on?

“Bash, hi,” Ju says.

I shoot my mother a look, but she pats my cheek. “I said I’ll handle your father, but there’s something you need to know.” With that cryptic statement, she’s gone, leaving me alone with Ju.

“What’s this about?” I eye her warily.

She slides into the seat next to me, crossing her long legs. “Can’t a girl want to catch up with an old friend?”

“We both know that’s not what this is.”

Something flickers in her eyes. Nervousness? Guilt? I can’t quite place it.

“Spit it out, Ju.”

“I’m really sorry. For what it’s worth, I had no idea.”

“About what?”

“After you broke up, Lil was at her uncle’s for a few days. Jason gave me money to…” She fidgets with her bag.

“To what?”

“To text Lil that I saw you with Blake, indicating you had sex and—”

The words hit me like a punch to the gut. “You did what?”

“I’m so sorry.” Ju grimaces. “I needed the money. I didn’t think… After you broke up, I thought it was okay to destroy something that had already been destroyed, and I thought it might help her get over you.”

“Fuck. You’re—” I want to slam my fist into something. Anything. But it wouldn’t help. Especially not now. Instead, I grit my teeth and let my fist fall to the side.

Ju mumbles another apology before scurrying away like the fucking rat she is. I grip my glass so hard I’m surprised it doesn’t shatter.

My gaze lands on Lil. She’s dancing with Elijah’s cousin, her body swaying to the beat, a small smile playing on her lips. But it doesn’t reach her eyes. Those whiskey depths I know so well, they’re shadowed. Haunted.

If what Ju said is true… If Jason paid her… What else were they capable of?

Did she really betray me?

The confusion in Lil’s eyes when I confronted her, the way she only ever apologized for Jason.

I down the rest of my drink, the burn doing nothing to quell the rage simmering in my veins.

Fuck it. I’m done watching from the sidelines.

Chapter 22

Lilian

The song changes, its rhythm slower, more intimate. I’m about to suggest a break to my dance partner when someone taps on his shoulder.

“Mind if I cut in?”

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