Page 48 of Scarred Heart

How could she do it?

How could she act like this?

I could count on one hand the number of people who knew about that night, all of whom had something to lose by exposing me, except for her, so long as she managed to keep her name out of it and deny breaking the contract she signed.It had to be her, no matter how much part of me wanted to believe otherwise.

“Read it,” I grunted.“And congratulate yourself.You fucked me over.You finally got the last punch.The death blow.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”She was laughing, but it was tense, nervous laughter.I would’ve been nervous in her position.Knowing I got caught.

Through my teeth, I grunted, “Read.It.” It was like I had never seen her before.I was staring at a stranger, one with the ability to lie to my face and not give two shits.

How could she?

It had all been a lie from the beginning.

She huffed but picked up the phone, shaking her head before she began to read.

Then the phone started to shake.“No,” she breathed out, eyes widening by the moment.Her mouth fell open, lips peeling back from her teeth in an expression of horror.

“What?Did you think he wouldn’t go public?That he wouldn’t contact every fucking tabloid in existence that wasn’t owned by the Diamond family?”Because, of course, Connor would never allow something like this in one of his publications.But there were plenty of others, no matter how vast the family empire happened to be.

“No.I didn’t!” She dropped the phone on the bed, lifted her head, and stared at me from across the sheets we had tangled what felt like a lifetime ago but was only minutes.Incredible how everything changed all at once.I was staring at a stranger now.

“No?”I barked out a laugh while pulling on a pair of sweatpants.“What a fucking joke.That’s all you can think to say?No?”

“What do you expect me to say?”A glance her way told me she was shivering, crossing her arms over her bare tits, following my every move.“I had nothing to do with that.Spencer, Iwould never!”

“Bullshit!”I shouted, the sound loud and sharp enough to make her jump.Good.Let her be afraid.She should’ve been.“You were the only other person who knew about Hannah, right?How your parents raised her after I ran off.”The more I thought about it, the more obvious it was.“I sure as fuck never told anybody what happened except my business partner, and he wouldn’t sabotage us like this.”

I laughed in complete disgust at the woman I imagined making a life with only ten minutes ago.“What, it wasn’t enough?”I demanded while tears welled in her eyes.They wouldn’t help.“Your great career, your promising future, the life you swear you’re so satisfied with?It wasn’t enough that I apologized and told you I never meant to desert you?”

Holding up a hand so she wouldn’t say another word, I asked, “Or did you spill your secrets to Damian before the night I thought we cleared the air?I haven’t forgotten how hostile you were when we first reconnected.What did he offer?Money?Or was the chance to destroy my name enough for you?”

“I already told you.”Now, anger leaked into her voice.It wasn’t so shaky and weak.“I didn’t do it.This wasn’t me!”

“Who the fuck was it?Tell me.If it wasn’t you, who could it have been?”I wanted her to tell me.I needed her to.I needed to believe there was another explanation because I didn’t know if I could live with myself otherwise.

When the best she did was whimper, my heart hardened for good.I snarled, “Get your shit together, walk out the door, and make sure I never have to look at you again.I’ve got much more important things to handle now that you’ve completely fucked my life.”

“Spencer.”Her voice quivered.“Please.Don’t do this.I’m telling the truth.Why won’t you listen to me?”

“I’m done listening to you.Consider the scales balanced.Congratulations.”I picked up her dress that was on the floor at the foot of the bed and picked it up, throwing it in her direction.“Get dressed and get the fuck out of here.Now!”I barked when she didn’t move fast enough.

“But what about Hannah?”

Hannah.Her name made me second-guess everything that had come out of my mouth, but I hardened my heart.“I’m not giving her up.You’ll hear from my lawyer.We’ll make arrangements that way.”This was too fucking much.I couldn’t handle it in front of her.I needed to be alone, where I couldn’t see her or hear her voice.It was bad enough I smelled her all over me.

“So that’s it?”she whispered.“You won’t give me a chance to defend myself?You won’t even listen?That’s how this ends?”

“No.That’s not how this ends because there was never anything to end.”That much was obvious, no matter how the words choked me.How was there anything real between us if she could commit a betrayal like this?

The phone on the bed buzzed, reminding me of what I had in store—phone calls, demands, accusations.No doubt Miles would call, frantic, pissed off.I couldn’t blame him.I’d assured him I had this under control.

Then, I had to go and lose sight of the ball.Too busy playing house, pretending to be a family, trying to make up for my father’s callousness and cruelty.

What a joke.Because of that, here I was, watching my life fall apart while a sniffling, whimpering woman pulled on her clothes.The phone buzzed again, and I turned away from it, pulling back the curtain and gazing out over yet another perfect day.Not so perfect from where I was standing.

“Would you at least let me speak?Because?—”

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