‘I got the first plane over.’ He thrusts a thickly padded A4 envelope under my nose. Huge glinting eyes dart between Chloe and me before settling on our joined hands. His lips lift in a cunning smirk, the most emotion I’ve seen from him in the eight months he’s worked for me. ‘Yourfiancéeasked me to give you this.’
Like hell she did.
Colton’s here for one reason only. To cause trouble, but this second, I don’t have time to question who actually sent him.
A gasp slips from Chloe’s lips. Her head whips around to face me so quickly, it’s a wonder she doesn’t get whiplash. She squeezes my hand as if to tell me to correct him. That he’s got it wrong. But, of course, I can’t.
If looks could kill, I’d have put Colton on the floor with his head decapitated from his tortured body. The smile on his face sets an icy shiver down my spine, and I understand now why Declan wasn’t entirely convinced of his innocence.
In fact, it’s obvious now. He’s the only person who could have had access to me and my artists who were targeted. Someone in a position of trust. But that’s something I’m going to have to ponder later. Right now, I’ve got bigger problems.
Having delivered the brown envelope, Colton hops back into the SUV. I note the number plate, but it’s not one of ours. The driver’s window slides down and he pokes his head out. ‘The Johnsons send their regards.’
What the actual fuck?
Chloe stands shell-shocked at my side, her trembling fingers still entwined in mine.
I take her other hand and turn her to face me so I can look her in the eyes. ‘Chloe, it’s not what it seems.’
‘Your fiancée?’ It’s barely a whisper. Fireworks soar and explode in the midnight sky. Fluorescent shooting stars illuminating the shit show that my life has just become.
‘It was only ever going to be on paper. It was the only feasible option at the time…’
Adrenaline kicks in with one hell of a surge. Chloe snaps her hands out of mine and takes three steps backwards. I reach out, but she shouts, ‘Don’t fucking touch me, Jayden. Don’t you dare touch me again.’
‘Chloe, give me a chance to explain.’
She raises a hand, palm facing my face, cutting me off before I can begin. ‘You want a chance to explain that the whole time you’ve been sleeping with me, you were planning to marry somebody else?’
‘It’s not how it seems. I should have told you. I was trying to do the right thing by everyone. This was supposed to be a fling. I wasn’t supposed to fall in love with you.’ From the thunderous look clouding her face, that was possibly the worst thing I could have said.
I try again. ‘I’m not in love with her. I barely even know her. Not really.’
A cold, shrill laugh pierces the air. ‘And that’s supposed to make me feel better, is it? And you had the audacity to sayyouwere protectingmyreputation.’
‘I swear to you Chloe, it’s not like that. I promised her sister a long time ago that I’d do whatever it takes to — ’
‘Her sister? Exactly who is this fiancée of yours?’ Chloe yells at me with flamed cheeks.
‘Can we talk about this in the limo?’ Enticing her into a safe place to talk might be the only way to prevent her from running away and executing her favourite party trick - fleeing the country.
‘If you think I’m going anywhere with you ever again, you’re badly mistaken.’ A hissing sound whistles from between her teeth. ‘You’re engaged. You made me into the other woman, something I swore I’d never be. You cheated on her. You cheated on me. But the one person you really cheated was yourself. I would have loved you for the rest of my life, more fool me. You are an absolute embarrassment, Jayden Cooper.’
Now she says she loves me. Or would have done, at least.
I flinch and hang my head as she rips open the one wound I can’t fully seem to close.
I am an embarrassment, running round trying to save the world as if I’m some kind of superhero. What the fuck was I thinking?
‘I trusted you. You’re the first man I let in after everything. I thought you were different.’ Her voice cracks with emotion.
‘Chloe, can we at least talk about this? It’s not what it seems.’
‘I’m done talking. It’s not exactly all it’s cracked up to be. Have a nice life.’ She slips into the back of the limo and slams the door behind her. The tyres screech down the driveway, leaving me shaking next to the one remaining SUV.
The skies open and it’s biblical. Huge globules of rain lash from the sky as if a dam has burst from heaven itself. The fireworks subside as Ryan belts out his final song.
I rip open the envelope to find evidence of the latest scandal I accidentally created while I was stupidly trying to do good. Pictures of Lula sunning herself by my pool, a copy of the initial visa application, and the prenup Kim and my lawyer drew up when we embarked on this crazy quest for Lula’s green card. There are also images of Chloe and me on the beach in Dubai. Fuck. It will probably be all over tomorrow’s papers. Just when Declan found a workaround, I’ve ruined everything with Chloe.
