Page 393 of Forbidden Billionaires: Vol. 1
"I need to use the restroom," I said quietly. "I'll be right back." I stumbled out of the bar stool and made my way to the bathroom.
"Hey, Penny," said a familiar voice behind me.
The little hairs on the back of my neck seemed to rise. I turned around and looked up at Austin. I hadn't seen him since I moved to New York. He looked the same as he had in college. Except his hair was shorter and he had a five o'clock shadow. I hated that the sight of him made my blood boil. The only person I hated more than him was Isabella. And maybe James' parents. I took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, do I know you?"
He laughed. "I know you haven't forgotten me, baby. You look upset. Are you okay?"
I just stared at him.
"So, you're getting married? James is an unlucky guy."
"Go to hell, Austin."
"That's not very nice to say to the first love of your life. I'm sure you dreamed of marrying me once."
"I never loved you."
He shrugged. "I guess we remember that differently."
"Great. Let's agree to disagree. Have a good night, Austin." I turned around but he grabbed my wrist.
"You know, you're the only girl that ever dumped me."
I pulled my arm away from him. "I didn't dump you. We never even dated."
"Well, you were a constant booty call then. You were so easy. Always ready to please me. Fuck, college was fun, huh?"
I shook my head.What a dick.
"Aren't you curious about why I know that you're marrying your professor?"
"You can read tabloids? Congratulations. I didn't know you were literate."
"You're feistier than I remember. I like it. But no, I didn't read about it. Isabella told me."
Despite the alcohol and the anger I felt toward him, my body suddenly felt cold. "What?"
"I ran into her the other day. She's smokin' hot by the way. James made a mistake letting her go."
I noticed the manila envelope in his hand for the first time.Oh God.Isabella really was a lunatic. She must have known about my history with Austin. And now she had him wrapped around her finger.How the hell did she even know I was here?I looked back up at Austin's face. He was wearing a smug smile. Like the thought of him sleeping with her would upset me. It didn't. They belonged together.
"And she's amazing in bed. Fucking fantastic actually. So much better than you. She's very talented with..."
"Stop. Please stop talking." I didn't care if Austin was fucking Isabella. But I didn't want to hear about how great she was. I didn't want to have to think about James and her together. About how much James had loved her. Or how he might still love her.
Austin smiled. "Touchy subject? Does James compare you to her often? It's really not much of a comparison." He looked so happy with himself.
"James loves me." My words didn't even convince myself.
"Really?" Austin tossed the envelope at me. "I'm not so sure about that."
"You know nothing about him. And you know nothing about me."
"Baby, I know you."
"You don't, Austin. You never did."
"Well, I know you're going to be upset about what's in that envelope."
