"No," I deny, my voice shaking. "Luke wouldn't do something like that. He wouldn't."
"Really?" Jude scoffs. "Are we talking about the same person here? This is Luke fucking Klein we're talking about. With his powerand authority in the media industry, he could do anything."
A tear falls onto my cheek, followed by another, and another. I don't want to believe it.
"Your rock, you said?" Jude mocks. "That's stupid. He was the reason why your life as a celebrity was hell in the first place. Is that the man who loves you?Love? If he really loved you, he wouldn't hurt you."
I'm trying my best to deny everything that Jude has thrown at me. But then, it all makes sense. Luke and Jude were always tense when they were around each other, like they'd known each other before.
That's why Luke was always against me meeting with Jude—he was afraid that Jude would tell me everything.
"No," I whisper brokenly.
"He's a fucking businessman, Cassie," Jude reminds me. "Do you know what people call him in the business world? The silent killer. He will use people's weakness behind their back to his advantage—that's his principle. How do you think he was able to build his business back from ruins? He wouldn't have done so without sacrificing people," Jude says matter-of-factly. "He used my weakness, but hecreatedyours. Fuck," he curses.
I cover my ears with my hands, squeezing my eyes shut.Stop it. I don't want to hear anything anymore.
Jude grips my shoulder, and when I open my eyes to look at him, more tears roll down my face.
"I can't let you stay with that beast," Jude whispers, his eyes also glistening, but with angry tears. "He's dangerous. You don't belong there. You belong with me, Cassie. I'm the only one who loves you. I'm the only one who's not using you. We don't have to end our fairy tale. We were perfect."
I sob, feeling my world crumbling. I don't know what to believe anymore, whom I should trust. Even though I feel like collapsing, I grab my clutch, push Jude away and storm toward the door, making him shout my name.
I wipe my tears, storming through the hallway, ignoring Jude, who keeps calling me to go back to him. My mind is still spinning.
A part of me doesn't want to believe Jude, while another part is extremely frightened from knowing that Jude might have spoken the truth.
Did Luke trap me? Did he purposely ruin my life, stomping it under his feet before playing the hero? Was all that I've believed in a lie?
When I turn around the corner, I see Luke leaning against the wall, waiting for me to come back from the restroom, and my heart breaks.
He greets me with a smile, which soon crumbles when he sees how devastated I am.
"Cassie," he calls, following me as I pass him, rushing to the lobby. "Cassie!"
I step outside the building, panting.
"What's the matter?" Luke's voice is filled with worry, but I don't even spare him a glance, my lips trembling.
When I still don't answer him, he gets the idea that I want to leave this place in an instant.
"Do you want to go home now? I'll call the driver." He takes out his phone, and silence creeps between us.
???
After we get into the car, the journey back home is only filled with my soft cries. Luke's worry turns into panic, while I keep looking away from him, staring out of the window.
"What is wrong?" His voice is loud and desperate. "Would you at least tell me what happened? How am I supposed to know what's going on if you don't even tell me?"
My sobs break; tears keep rolling down my face. I don't even know if I have enough strength to confront him.
"You're fucking killing me, Cassie," he hisses, the frustration in his voice telling me that seeing me crying makes him want to breaksomething. "Did you encounter Jude? Did he hurt you again?"
And that makes my sobs even worse.
"Cassie—" He touches my arm, but I snap his hand off.
"Don't touch me," I bite out, and shock skates all over his face.
