Page 20 of My Ex-Fiance's Best Men
Phoebe’s footsteps on the patio catches our attention, and we all turn to look at her. She smiles shyly as she approaches, the pale-yellow dress she’s wearing flowing smoothly over her curvy figure. The suntan suits her, bringing out the blue of her eyes and adding more gold to her long, wavy hair.
“Morning,” she says, roses blooming in her cheeks.
“Good morning, beautiful,” I reply and pull up a chair for her.
“You were talking about Matthew,” she says, taking a seat between Dominic and me.
I plant a soft kiss on her cheek while Theo gets up, fixing her a plate with a little bit of everything. “You need to rebuild your strength after all the work you put in last night.”
“It was quite the workout,” she says with a quiet laugh. She looks at me, her humor fading. “I haven’t looked at my phone yet. What’s going on?”
“Nothing we can’t handle, and nothing you should concern yourself with,” I reply and pour her a cup of coffee while she takes a long sip of ice-cold water. “We’re having a good time here, Phoebe. Let’s not let anybody spoil it.”
“Oh, nobody can spoil this,” she says, resting against Dominic’s shoulder. “Nobody. I was just wondering what the rest of the world is doing.”
“They’re loud, as usual. Snakes trying to take the high road, rats trying to bite,” Dominic replies. “It’s the way of social media. Everyone has an opinion and they assume others want to hear it,” he says and kisses her on the lips.
“I like it here better,” Phoebe whispers.
“Good,” I say and pull her into another kiss, tasting the coffee on her plump, soft lips. She smells of vanilla and lotus flowers, courtesy of the resort’s shower gel, and I could easily get drunk on her fragrance. “Let Matthew live online with the rest of his horde.”
“He commented about you being here, didn’t he?”
I give her a worried look, but Phoebe doesn’t seem sad or hurt. Just resigned. It should be a good thing. Going through the stages of grief after the sudden and unexpected collapse of a relationship would normally take longer. But this is day three of the aftermath, and she seems very well put together.
“He did,” Theo replies. “We’re ignoring him.”
“As we should,” she says, then takes a gander at the breakfast table. “Holy smokes, that’s a lot of food.”
“Given the intensive cardio we did last night and earlier this morning, I think we need the fuel,” I tell her with a wink and a wicked smile.
“Won’t argue with you there.” She giggles, and I love the sound of it.
“Shit,” Dominic says as he checks a notification on his phone. At the same time, mine and Theo’s ping, as does Phoebe’s. “He just posted a photo.”
We all open it at the same time. It’s a picture of him smiling, dressed up in one of his Cavallini shirts, his arm around a supermodel with long, brown hair and thin arms. Her face is blurred, but they’re both holding champagne glasses while a view of the Hamptons harbor unravels behind them.
I glance quickly at Phoebe and watch as the joy drains from her face.
“‘Upgraded’ he says in the caption,” Phoebe whispers. “He upgraded.”
“Phoebe—” Theo tries to comfort her, but she shoots up from her chair, shaking like a leaf.
“It’s cool,” she says. “But I think I need a moment alone. Maybe a cold shower this time. I’m not that hungry anyway.” Her stomach growls, giving her away as she gives us an embarrassed look.
Dominic smiles at her gently. “Phoebe, it’s okay. He’s doing it on purpose. He wants to hurt you.”
“I’m not hurt. I’m just… I’m insulted,” she replies. “Excuse me.”
I can see her spiraling, but we have to let her go, for now. She needs to go through the motions, as painful and as uncomfortable as they may be. I make a mental note to smash Matthew’s face the next time I see him. I pray, for his sake, that the anger I’m feeling fades before we meet again.
“Fucking hell,” Dominic mutters.
The patio door to Phoebe’s room closes behind her. It tears me up on the inside, but I have to let her deal with this her way. She’ll come out stronger in the end.
“He’s doing it on purpose,” Theo scoffs. “Hasn’t got more than a C-note to his name yet he’s trying to build a reputation online, drawing clout and controversy until an opportunity drops in his lap.”
“That’s alright,” I say, sounding resigned though I am anything but. “Whatever Matthew tries to build can always come crashing down.”
