Page 46 of Vain
“No, you’re not because you’re better than she is.”
“She make you cry?”
I swallow hard, not wanting to lie to him.
“Right,” he whispers, his tone full of malice.
“She’s not worth it, Aiden.”
“No, but you are. And I’ll be damned if I let her fuck with you.”
Chapter Nineteen
AIDEN
I find Zoe’s room and leave Matilda there to talk with the social worker. Wade had already texted me to say he was on his way down.
I’d tried to rein in my temper for Tilly’s sake, but it simmered until I could leave her. Now it’s threatening to boil over. I cannot believe the audacity of that woman. To think that saying something like that to someone would ever be okay, regardless of how you felt about them, dumbfounds me. I’d like to say this is out of character for her, and yeah, maybe to this extreme it is, but she’s always been a little on the bitchy side. It’s just one of the many reasons none of my friends warmed to her. I didn’t bother making excuses. I let Cora lead me around by my dick and buried my head in the sand. The sex was good. She could be sweet. What more was there I needed? It took spending merely a few days with Tilly to realize exactly what I would have missed out on by settling.
When the elevator doors open, I find Wade standing there with a face like thunder. “She went too damn far this time,” he snaps.
His anger at the whole situation only justifies my own. “I swear to god, if I get my hands on her…” I let my voice drift off when he looks at me sharply.
“Cop, remember.”
I shrug. “I’m too pissed to give a shit right now. I need to return to Kellen, but I’m filing a complaint. That shit is not okay.”
“Agreed. I filed one myself and told her supervisor how close she is to having criminal charges filed against her.”
“That true?”
“At this point, there is nothing, from a legal standpoint, that I can do. But like I said, it’s a slippery slope. If she’s willing to go this far, what’s next? If Matilda were a patient here and Cora deemed her a threat, would she alter her medication? Offer her sub-par care?”
“I’d like to say no. But after this, I have no idea what she’s truly capable of. I guess I never really knew her at all.” And doesn’t that make me feel sick to the stomach. Not just because I willingly took this woman to my bed but because she hid the level of cruelty behind a clever mean girl persona. She manipulated me to think less of her in those situations. I stopped expecting better behavior and, in the end, kind of justified her actions to myself. She never went too far that I called her out, but just far enough to make my friends and family pull away so they didn’t have to deal with her. If our roles had been flipped, people would have recognized the signs for what they were. Red fucking flags.
“Think Matilda will file a complaint?” he continues, oblivious to my inner musings.
“Perhaps. She’ll want to, but I’m not sure that’s the route we want to take. It will blow her cover.”
He sighs but nods. “I’ll ask her. At the end of the day, it’s her decision to make. Just remember that if Matilda’s identity comes out, it won’t take five minutes for Cora to spin things and make herself sound like the victim.”
“She’ll paint Matilda as rude and a liar, and the media don’t give a single fuck about the truth.”
We’re both lost in thought for a minute before he runs his hands through his hair and hits the button for the elevator. “I’d better get down there. Cora was asked to leave for the rest of the day. But if she’s stupid enough to track Matilda down and start something in front of Zoe, I have a feeling your girl will go full-on mama bear on her ass. The last thing I want to have to do is lock up Matilda fucking Carson.”
I can’t help but laugh at that. He’s right, though. If there were anything or anyone Tilly would blow her cover for, it would be Zoe. I’m not sure how the instant bond snapped into place between them, but I’m not about to question it. Both of them have found something in each other that the other needs. Who am I to question the hows and whys? Besides, didn’t the same damn thing happen between myself and Tilly? If it continues, I’ll have to start calling it the Tilly effect.
“Catch you later. Oh, I spoke to Blake earlier. They’re flying back today, so someone else will be coming back to stay with Kellen If I don’t see you before we fly out, thanks for all this. I know you’d much rather spend your day off with your family.”
The doors slide open, and he steps inside. “Are you kidding me? My wife would kill me if anything happened to Matilda.”
I shake my head and grin as the doors slide closed. Turning on my heel, I head back to Kellen’s room, knocking before I go in just in case he’s getting a sponge bath. There are things I can’t unsee.
Mathews answers the door, frowning when he sees me. “What the fuck happened? You lit out of here like your ass was on fire.”
I look at Kellen, who is watching me curiously, the gleam of narcotics gone from his eyes.
“Cora happened.”
