Page 71 of Changing Rules

“He definitely does.” Stacey laughs. “I still don’t know why Audrey hired me instead of him.”

Numbness takes over, creeping through my extremities. I shrug. “She likes you more than she likes me.”

Stacey’s eyes widen.

“Bella,” Xander says softly, his fingers brushing my hand.

I take a step away from him and scan the venue. “Is everyone already here?”

“Erm…yeah… No, actually, no,” she mumbles. “There are only a few others so far.”

“Okay.” With a nod, I head deeper into the restaurant.

Behind me, Xander asks her where he should put the stroller, and she says she’ll show him. It’ll give her a chance to ask him about my comment, I’m sure.

Though I continue looking around, I don’t actually see any of the details. The music is indistinct to my ears. I’m here and not here at the same time, lost in my head. I wander further into the restaurant, and just as I’m skirting around a column, a voice catches my attention.

“How are things with Alex?”

I stop in my tracks, my heart leaping into my throat. A few feet away, Audrey and her friend Jess sit on the couch, though from my vantage point, I don’t think they can see me.

“I haven’t seen any news about charges. Have they been dropped?” Jess asks.

Audrey lets out a humorless laugh. “That man decided not to press charges, thank God,” she says. “Apparently, it was all her mother’s doing. I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s extorting him by promising to keep her mouth shut if he pays her. Like mother, like daughter. I wasn’t even surprised.”

My knees wobble so violently, I have to press a hand to the column to remain upright.

“Are you talking about Isabella?”

“Her.” Audrey huffs. “I can’t wait for my brother to see the light and finally dump her. She’s nothing but bad news.”

“He loves her.”

Tears spring to my eyes. Jess’s kindness is surprising, and so appreciated.

“Hethinkshe loves her,” Audrey grinds out. “He’s only with her because he was obsessed with avenging Stacey. He wanted to punish Miller. So, when the opportunity arose, he seized it. He wanted to make Miller suffer by taking away the person he loved, the way Miller took Stacey from him.”

“You don’t know that for sure, and it’s obvious that Alex loves Bella. The way he looks at her, how he behaves when she’s around…it’s love, Audrey, in its purest form.”

Warmth starts rekindling in my lower abdomen, and the tiniest smile tries to grow on my lips.

“It’s not love. It’s an obsession,” Audrey snaps.

My smile falls, along with my shoulders.

“Alex loves sex, that’s all. And that girl…turned his head. They are so hot for each other, it’s disgusting. He can’t keep his hands to himself when she’s around. But I guarantee, as soon as he stops thinking with his small head, he’ll see how much better Stacey is for him.”

“Audrey…” Jess hedges. “You shouldn’t be meddling in their business.”

Audrey scoffs. “No meddling needed. He hangs out with Stacey all the time. They text a lot. He’s so,soclose to finally seeing things for what they are. He’ll figure out soon enough that his first love never died. If not for Miller, they never would’ve broken up.”

“Wait.” Jess pauses. “Is that why you hired Stacey to plan the shower?”

Audrey’s responding laugh is cocky as hell. “It was like fate intervened. I was looking for an event company, and then there she was. Once I hired her, all I had to do was step back and watch. They’re already finding their way back to each other. I just arranged for them to run into one another. Everything else is happening on its own.”

“It’s manipulation.”

My vision blurs, my eyes full of tears. I was right all this time. I was right.

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