“You seen Ivy?” I asked her.
“Oh, Evan,” she said sympathetically. “I think you need to sit down.”
“Why?”
She shoved me back down onto the leather couch.
“You should have known better than to bring a woman as wonderful and voluptuous as Ivy to a place like Miami. The men here are very macho; they know how to impress a woman, and they appreciate a woman with curves,” Ivy’s mother stated.
“Where is she?”
“I think you mean who is she with?” Tiffanie replied, patting me on the knee. “Now, I don’t like to rat on people, but you need to step up your game if you want to win Ivy.”
“Where is she?” I roared.
Tiffanie winced. “I saw her in a private room with a Cuban millionaire.”
The alcohol swam in my vision, and I saw red. It was like when I found out that Camilla had been cheating on me, except a thousand times worse. The rage consumed me.
“That fucking bitch.”
“Now, now,” Tiffanie said. “Don’t do anything hasty. You can still win her back.”
“You think I want anything to do with your trashy daughter after she’s out here cheating on me?” I snarled at her.
“She’s not trashy!” Tiffanie’s voice warbled.
“She is. She’s just like you,” I snapped. “She’s just like Camilla.”
“She’s better than Camilla!” Tiffanie protested. “You’d be lucky to have Ivy as a wife. That’s why all the men here want her.”
“Well, I don’t,” I snarled, taking out my phone. I could barely read the screen to type. The letters swam in my vision as I texted.
Evan:Did your team terminate the eviction proceeding on Ivy’s condo?
Carl Svensson:Hah! As if Greg was going to do that before we had a firm alternate. But don’t worry, the replacement parcels should be certified tomorrow by the lawyers.
Evan:Forget the alternative properties. You can move ahead with evicting Ivy and demolishing her building.
After any hope of making amends with Ivy was nuked from orbit, I left the club.
I passed Ivy in the hallway. She didn’t even pretend to be happy to see me. She didn’t smile, didn’t wave. She just looked worried.
Good, I thought.I know exactly what you’ve been up to, and you’re going to pay. After what Camilla did to me, I’m never letting another woman humiliate me like that again.
48
Ivy
Isaw Evan leaving as I came back inside from getting some air. I didn’t smile at him or act happy to see him. He didn’t say a word to me as he left. His mouth was set.
Good, I thought.That’s what you get for being a manipulative liar. I hope you drown in your own guilt. Lying to me and leading me on like that.
I always had wanted kids, and I could have probably raised someone else’s, but Camilla’s kids? Having to deal with Camilla on a day-in, day-out basis while she tried to sabotage my relationship with Evan? It would have been difficult, if not impossible.
But to know that Evan had looked into my face and lied about the whole situation for days? Unforgivable.
My life was already a disaster. I didn’t need the drama. Evan claimed he loved me, but maybe he was just saying the words. Billionaire’s were sociopaths after all. To Evan, I had been just another conquest.
