Even knowing what she had done, how she had twisted information, how she had used her words against us, I still couldn’t imagine being in Inés’s position.
So instead of trying, I pulled her into a tight hug, pressing my cheek to the crown of her head. It felt impossible, everything that had happened, everything we’d gone through. But we’d only found each other in this mess, been pulled together at every turn.
Now, with her hand in mine, I knew we could survive anything.
48
Inés
Lip Service—Xana
Icouldn’t keep my rage from spilling over as I watched the elevator’s floor indicator tick upward, my hands clenched into fists.
I’d held Chloe all of last night, soothing her when nightmares woke her in a cold sweat, but when Calvin had come to check in on her, I’d seen it as my opportunity to go deal with the leak situation once and for all.
I would regret that I hadn’t done enough to protect her for the rest of my life. The leak was coming from my team, from the person I had trusted the most, and I hadn’t been able to stop it.
The elevator doors slid open. I marched down the hallway towards Selene’s office, the familiar surroundings warping under the weight of my fury.
I had been here a thousand times before. My first meeting with her. Drinks after work. Picking her up for dinner.
I didn’t even glance at her receptionist, who was mid-call but still snapped to attention as I stormed past. “Inés! Do you have an appoint—”
I shoved open Selene’s office door. She was at her desk, typing, oblivious. At the sight of me, her head snapped up, brows lifting in surprise.
The office smelled how it always did, like that expensive and luxurious candle set I’d always gifted her over the holidays, a reminder of our friendship. Selene sat behind her desk, fingers hovering over her laptop, the faint click of the keys stopping as she noticed me.
Her expression flickered between surprise and something else. Something wary. “Inés? What are you doing here?”
She stood, smoothing her silk blouse as she strode towards me, and for a second, I nearly broke.
Until yesterday, I had trusted her with everything: my career, my private life, my future. Now, looking at her, all I could see was betrayal, slithering beneath her composed expression.
I swallowed back my rage, forcing my voice to stay level. “I know what you did.”
Selene stilled. The mask slipped for a fraction of a second before she recovered.
She stood straighter, trying to reclaim authority. She gestured stiffly to the chairs in front of her desk. “Take a seat. We should talk.”
I laughed. Sharp, bitter. “I’m not here for a meeting. I don’t think there’s anything you could say to fix this.” My teeth ground together. “You sold information about Chloe to the press.”
Selene’s throat bobbed as she swallowed. “I was doing it for you. You were running low on funds. I knew you needed more opportunities and you wouldn’t even take advantage of the one that was right in front of you.”
“I told you I would never sell out my friends,” I shot back, my voice rising.
“She wasn’t your friend.” Selene pressed a hand to her temple, exhaling sharply. She glanced at the open door, the attention from the outer office not lost on her, or me. “You needed to win. I did what I had to do to keep you afloat,” she said, her tone condescending. “It brought you some extra income. I saved it for you.”
I let out a sharp, humorless laugh. “Did you skim your fifteen per cent off the top before or after betraying me?”
“It was my job.”
“No, you were supposed to have my back. We’ve always worked together, always been a team. Why now? Why betray me like this?”
For a second, something like regret flashed across her face. But it wasn’t enough. It would never be enough.
“I’m your friend,” she whispered.
I shook my head, disgust curling in my chest. “Friends don’t sell each other out.” My voice sharpened. “And you didn’t just betray me, you used me. You sold stories about my girlfriend to the worst people in the business.”
