Angelica stands from her chair, stalking her way around the space. I’m sure she knows this is all bullshit, but I just smile and keep talking. “Have you found a good financial management firm yet? With all this money, you’ll certainly need help. I know a guy. I can hook you up if you want.”
She scoffs. “What makes you think I’m not capable of managing my own money?”
“Well, the Bouchers gave you a million dollars, and you already blew through it. Seems like you might not want to make that mistake again.”
Angelica steps over to me, knife aimed at my throat. I press into the back of the chair.Maybe I pushed her a bit too far.
“What do you know about money? You have a good job. You don’t know what it’s like living like a fucking peasant in a one-bedroom apartment that doesn’t even have a water line to hook up to my nugget ice maker—I have to fill that damn thing up every day!! And now you’re dating a rich boy to get his money too? That’s the real crime here, Blondie.You’retakingmymeal ticket.”
I push my shoulders back. “That’s where you’re wrong, Angelica. I am not dating him for his money. In fact, that’s the thing that turned me off the most about him.”
Her eyes fill with confusion as if she can’t comprehend why I would hate someone for their money. “You’re a fucking liar.Everyonewants money,” she huffs as she pulls the knife back, looking at her reflection in the blade.
“Ihatedthe thought of being the girlfriend of some rich playboy who dropped money on ridiculous things just because he could. That’s not me. I’m not flashy. I’ve worked too damn hard for what I have. I thought he was cocky and conceited and rude and…” my voice trails off as my eyes well up. I’m not a chronic crier, but this guy has somehow unlocked the sappy part of my brain and, the worst part is, I’m not even mad about it. Not even a little bit. Not even at all.
She darts her eyes between me and the weapon she’s still fiddling with, her scowl lethal enough to kill a wandering rodent with a single look.
“I was quick to judge him. I thought I knew his type; I see them all the time at work. It turns out I was wrong. He’s kind and sweet and cares about everything and everyone. He has the biggest heart.” My smile is genuine despite the fear humming through me. “I didn’t even know someone could have a heart that big. He watches all my favorite rom-coms. He does ridiculous dance routines in my living room just to make me laugh. He even got me a Taylor Swift autographed guitar that Oliviastillgives me a dirty look about every time I mention it. Funny,” I say with a slight laugh under my breath, “that was the only gift he got me before we were together that I actually liked. Honestly, he’s made me feel like the richest woman in the world, but not with his money. With his heart. He makes me feel like I’m the most important person. That’s why I fell in love with him, Angelica. He could lose every cent to his name, and I would still love him. I don’t care if he only has a dollar in his bank account or a million; it’s who he is that stole my heart.”
“Nice try, sweetie,” she spits, “but I’m not buying that crap. Those are all the things that make himweak. Nothing but a fool.” I grit my teeth, wishing I could make Jordan’s dream of poking her eyes out with skewers a reality.I see the appeal.“Just wait…you’ll be just as annoyed with his sweetness one day, and all of this will come back to haunt you in the end. Well…” She smiles as she rotates the knife in her hand. “That’s if I decide to let you go.”
This fucking bitch.
A loud knock on the door startles me, but I use the distraction to continue rubbing the zip tie against the back of the chair, desperate to create enough friction to finally break it.
“Let’s see who our mystery guest is, shall we?” She walks over to unlock the door. As it clicks open, I see none other than the man I just declared my love for being shoved in, a bag over hishead, blood on his shirt. A chill runs up my spine. A gun. Pointed at him. And the person forcing him in holding the gun?
I fucking knew it.
“Well, well, well. Nice little reunion we have going on here,” Chadd sneers with a stupid smirk on his face, as he yanks the bag away. “You were right, Angelica…he came running to try and save her.”
“Jordan!” I yell as Chadd shoves him into a chair next to me and zip ties his wrists. “Are you okay? Oh my God…You’re bleeding.”
“I’ve gotten hit worse on the ice. He caught me off guard when he punched me, put a bag over my head, and told me to walk. But I’m fine.” His smile is painted red. “Are you okay?”
I lean toward him, nearly toppling my chair. “I’m fine. She didn’t hurt me. Just fucking drugged my drink to get me here.”
“She drugged you?! Fuck, we have to get you to the doctor right away…this can’t be good for…” He squints. “What the fuck is Mara doing here?” he asks, his voice shaking.
“Awww, Jordan, you haven’t changed a bit,” Angelica interrupts, her voice mocking. “I’msodisappointed you don’t remember yourfavoritegirlfriend. Still a fool for any woman who gives you attention. Truly, it was so easy to manipulate both of you. It’s pathetic.”
His eyes go wide as his jaw drops. His hands shake, his face white as a ghost’s. I fight the urge to bust out of these zip ties. I hate being tied up right now, not being able to comfort him, hold him as he slowly realizes the same thing I did when I first woke up here.
We’ve been fucking duped.
66
jordan
Ithink I’m gonna be sick.She’s been here this whole time.Spying. Threatening. Texting. Taking pictures.It was all her. The woman who fucking ruined my life. And even worse—I got Kennedy dragged into this, too. Fuck. I can’t hold it back. Everything crashes in. I jolt forward, retching onto the filthy concrete floor as the last few months of fear and panic tear their way out of me. I blink away the tears from being sick, and this entire fucked up situation. The love of my life and the mother of the unknown number of children is tied up in a chair beside me.Get your shit together, Boucher.I wipe my mouth off as best I can on my shirt as my mind races through the past few months—everything I should have seen and didn’t.
“Angelica? It’s been you this whole time? Fuck, now I realize why I was so creeped out this morning when you bumped into me. What the hell happened to your face?”
She lets out a loud sigh, her eyes rolling back. “I don’t have time to keep repeating myself. Blondie,” —she waves a knife at Kennedy— “fill him in.”
I look to Kennedy. Wishing I could hold her. Wishing she could hold me through all this.
Kenni explains that, apparently, my former girlfriend, stalker, and now kidnapper altered her appearance to try to get more money from me.What theactualfuck?I need a Zack Morris time-out right about now because my brain is about to freaking explode.
