Page 28 of Forbidden Billionaires: Vol. 10
Going For Gold - Chapter 11
Monday
Alina
I finished blow-drying my hair and glanced down at my phone. I had been silently willing Chris to text me all day. He was doing a great job staying away from me, which is what I had requested. But that was before I had told him we were done. And this silence didn't feel like he was respecting my boundaries. It felt like we really were over. I knew we needed to have another conversation. I refused for it to end by me slamming the door in his face. I didn't think he really meant the things he said, but he still said them.
If he called me right now, I'd answer in a heartbeat. I'd hear him out. But he wasn't calling. And I couldn't help but think that he was hanging out with a bunch of sleazy women, catching up on all he had missed out on in the last two years. I put my elbows down on the sink and my face in my hands. It really was over. Gabriela had won. Again. I just felt so defeated.
A knock on the bathroom door made me jump.
"Hey, are you almost ready?" Kristen asked.
"Yeah, just a sec." I glanced down once more at my phone. Chris had cheated on me. I had found out. And now we were done. He hadn't reached out to try to fix things, because there wasn't anything else to talk about. Even if I could forgive him, I couldn't trust him. Maybe if this had been the first time that he hadn't been faithful. But this wasn't the first time we had a conversation like this. I just never had photographic evidence before. I waslike putty in his handsome hands and he knew it.Screw you, Chris.
I took a deep breath and looked in the mirror. All the under-eye concealer in the world couldn't hide the fact that I had been crying, but I applied a little extra hoping it would help before unlocking the door.
"Wear this one," Kristen said and tossed me a sparkly, low-cut dress when I walked out of the bathroom.
"I want something a little more conservative." I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear and opened up the closet.
"It's a date, not an office meeting."
"It's not a date either. What if Gabriela set Chris up? Maybe I should call him..."
"No. Chris is an asshole. Chris has always been an asshole. And Chris will always be an asshole."
"Just because you don't like him..."
"Alina, you're my best friend and I'm trying really hard to be supportive. I know I've told you this a hundred times, but apparently you need to hear it one more time. People don't change."
She was referring to Chris being a player. We had had this conversation a bunch of times. And I always chose not to believe her. Because there hadn't been proof. Now that there was, could I really look the other way? I pulled a dress out of the closet. Itwas short but didn't have such a plunging neckline. "How about this one?"
She smiled and nodded. "Keeping a little to the imagination. Good choice."
"Are you sure you don't want to just grab takeout and watch that movie we skipped out on yesterday?"
"Bryce seems like a nice, normal, drop dead gorgeous guy. You need this."
"I need time." I felt empty and lost. I thought Chris was my future. I bit my lip. There was no way I was going to start crying again.Fuck.
Kirsten gave me a sympathetic smile. "Trust me, tonight is going to make you feel better."
I thought about my reaction to Bryce kissing me during Operation Red Rip. I had wanted to kiss him back. I pulled on the dress I had picked out. Bryce had cheered me up after that horrible game. He didn't care that I had snot all over my jersey. He sat with me and made me laugh. And during Operation Red Rip he had made me forget all about my breakup with Chris. He made it feel like I could breathe again. I didn't know anything about him, but I liked the way he made me feel. When I was with him everything seemed like it was going to be okay.
"What do you think?" I asked and turned toward Kristen. She was wearing a dress much more similar to the one she had wanted me to wear. Apparently she didn't want Ocelot to imagine very much.
"Perfect. Come on, or we're going to be late." She linked her arm in mine and pulled me toward the door.
Going For Gold - Chapter 12
Monday
Bryce
I couldn't believe it, but I actually had butterflies in my stomach as we waited for the girls to arrive. It was like I was back in fifth grade again.
"Dude, what's that guy's deal?" asked Tim, signaling with his eyes for us to look behind him.
