Page 92 of Never the Best

She looked beautiful as she made her case. I wondered, cynically, if she’d practiced in the mirror.

“Josie, the only thing between us is the fact that weusedto be engaged. And, honestly, we should never have gotten there.”

She flinched at that, her cheeks flushing slightly. “You don’t have to be cruel, Rhett.”

“I’m not being cruel. I’m being honest,” I said sincerely. “Come on, Josie, we got engaged because you were pregnant and not because we were in love.”

Her jaw tightened, but instead of snapping back, she reached for her matcha latte, taking a measured sip. “You broke my heart, Rhett,” she accused.

I sighed and was glad when the server interrupted us with my coffee. When I simply said thank you, she looked at both of us and bounced away.

God, but I wasn’t in the mood for perky.

“I didn’t break your heart, Josie. What broke is probably your ego.” I didn’t want to do this. I didn’t want to be rude to her. No matter what she did to Pearl, I didn’t want to stoop to her level. I couldn’t control her behavior, but I could mine, and I didn’t want to behave in a manner that didn’t match up with my values of being respectful.

“And then at the soirée?” Her voice trembled now, and she wasn’t pretending; she was really distraught. “How could you humiliate me like that in front of everyone?”

I hated her sanctimonious horse manure. “Josie, are you forgetting how you, not only announced to the world about Pearl’s health issues, but made fun of her at the soirée?”

She cocked an eyebrow, the sophisticated persona slipping. “Look who’s talking. Weren’t you the one who said you had to roll her in flour to find the wet spot to fuck her?”

I closed my eyes and counted until ten because I didn’t want to say or do anything I’d regret later.

“Josie, I’m not here to discuss my girlfriend with you. You said you wanted to?—”

“Girlfriend?” she shrieked now. “How could you, Rhett?”

I looked around and noticed a few people watching us with interest. “Calm down, or someone will make a video, and that shit will go viral,” I warned.

“You mean like your little speech at the soirée?” she demanded, hostility dripping from her tone.

“Yeah, exactly like that,” I confirmed.

“You have no idea what my life has been like since that stupid soirée,” she shot back. “Do you know what it’s like to be shunned by everyone you’ve ever known? To walk into a room and feel their judgment, their whispers? Betsy Rhodes won’t even look at me anymore. Dixie May and Caroline are scrambling to recover their reputations. I’ve lost everything.”

I stared at her, unmoved. “And what exactly do you expect me to do about that?”

Her eyes snapped to mine, a flicker of anger breaking through her carefully composed exterior. “You could help me.” She leaned toward me. "You could tell people I’m notas horrible as they think. Remind them that I was your fiancée, not some pariah. We could say we’ve made up—that we’re together again.”

Was she out of her fucking mind?

“First things first, we’renevermaking up.”

“We don’t have to,” she said from between clenched teeth. “We could just tell people that until…you know things calm down.”

My eyes widened at her insolence. “You want me to pretend that we’re still together to save your reputation?”

“Yes.”

She had big brass ones, I had to give her that.

“The answer isfuckno.”

“Language, Rhett, and?—”

“Oh, cut the crap, Josie. I can’t believe that you think I’ll lift a finger to help you.”

Her nostrils flared rather unflatteringly. “I don’t deserve to have my life ruined because of one bad night.”

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