Chapter Twenty-Four
Even with a plan in place and backup nearby, Ben couldn’t help being just a little nervous about meeting with Annie. He found himself fidgeting with a salt packet, his leg bouncing under the table.
He’d done this a dozen times, but he never really got used to it. He doubted things were going to get all that nasty in the middle of a busy diner at peak hour, but all the same, there was a part of him that had gotten used to dodging punches when this kind of thing went down.
Just as he was about to check to make sure his phone was recording for the thousandth time, Annie came in the door.
Ben held her gaze as she walked over and sat down opposite him.
“Can I get you a cup of coffee?” she asked, still upbeat and cheerful as she’d ever been.
“No,” Ben said, thankful that he didn’t have to be polite. She thought she had him over a barrel, it only made sense that he’d be disgruntled about it.
“How’s Sam?” she asked.
“He’s fine. Blissfully unaware. Waiting for me,” Ben said.
Sam was waiting for him, and he was fine, but he wasn’t unaware.
The thing that kept going through Ben’s mind was that they’d been singled out because when they’d gotten there, they reallyweren’ttogether. They’d looked like the most critical case, the easiest to manipulate.
It was a misstep that likely wouldn’t have happened if some asshole in marketing at Cocky hadn’t decided that what they wanted was a fluffy report about what really happens at couples’ retreats.
Maybe there was some value to those fluff stories, after all.
Ben wasn’t about to jump on theTen Ways to Tie Your Shoelacesbandwagon, but he hated it just a little less today.
“That’s sweet,” Annie said. “You seem like a smart enough man to have the money.”
Ben nodded. “I assumed cash would be appropriate.”
He lifted the duffle bag beside him and dropped it on the table.
It was full of cut-up waste paper, but it looked realistic enough at first glance. That was all he needed.
He kept a solid grip on it as Annie eyed it off. “I’m terrified that he’s going to realize this has gone missing and trace it back to me,” Ben said. This was the critical part, the bit where he goaded her into justifying herself. “I don’t know how you can sleep at night knowing you’re ruining lives. And for the sake of ten thousand dollars. How the hell is it worth it?”
Annie looked between the duffel bag and Ben’s face. “I don’t have to explain myself to you,” she said.
“I guess you’re just evil.” Ben shoved the bag over to her, sitting back. “I don’t care about the money. I care about my relationship with Sam. I love him more than anything, and yeah, I’ve made mistakes, but… I could never do this.”
To Ben’s surprise, Annie laughed. It wasn’t happy laughter, and she wasn’t cackling, either. It was a bitter, sad sound.
“You and I aren’t so different. You’re doing this to save your relationship, I’m doing it to save mine.”
“What, Robert’s bullying you into blackmail? No offence, but he doesn’t seem smart enough.”
Annie narrowed her eyes. “He’s a good man. He’s a better man than any of the lying, cheating, selfish assholes who come through our doors. You wouldn’t understand. You think life is all about you, you never have to worry about anything. You and your rich boyfriend who isn’t going to miss money that could-”
She stopped talking abruptly, as though she’d said too much. Ben played back the last sentence in his mind, trying to work out what to jump on.
She thought Sam wouldn’t miss the money—which showed justhowwrong she’d been about the kind of people they were.
“Money that could what?” Ben growled.
Annie glared at him. “We’re broke. Do you have any idea how much it costs to start a business like ours? It was never even meant to be a couples’ retreat, but rich people… rich people like you, and their miserable relationships didn’t give us any choice. Do you know how many times disgusting men have come onto me there? How many times their wives have come onto Robert?”
Ben had wondered if that was how it all started. An idea that sprang forth from one of the guests, and grew from there. It didn’t excuse it, but it didexplainit.
