“You don’t know that, Kingi.” Her eyes shine. “She could be telling the truth.”
“She’s not. She heard about the engagement, and she decided on the spot to make something up to stop it.”
“You can’t be sure.”
“I can. I used a condom every time.”
She blinks. “Condoms break.”
I glare at her. I know she’s right, and it can happen. “I am not going to let that woman bring me down.” I jab a finger at the club. “And I am not going to let her spoil what we have.”
“We don’t have anything,” she says tiredly. “This is all fake, remember? Pulling it off was always going to be a long shot. I think it’s time we admitted it hasn’t worked.”
She turns to walk away, but I grab her arm again, panic rising inside me. “I’m not giving up that easily.”
She pulls her arm away again. “It’s not up to you.” She starts walking down the steps as she takes her phone out of her clutch. “I want to go home. I’m going to call for an Uber.”
“Chessie, please stay.”
“I don’t want to. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“Don’t go. I’ll just come after you.” I’m determined not to let her leave.
“Stop.” She’s close to tears now. “I don’t want to talk to you. I’m upset, and I need to go. Please, just let me. And don’t follow me. I’ve had enough of that from Tamati. I don’t want it from you.”
She turns and runs down the steps, heading down the drive for the main road.
I watch her go, and this time, I don’t stop her.
After blowing out a long breath, I turn and walk slowly back up the steps. I can’t force her to stay. And I mustn’t go after her and try to force her to talk to me—I don’t want to be like her ex.
She’s genuinely upset about this. I don’t know why. Is it that she’s conscious of the story coming out tomorrow, and how embarrassing it will be for her?
Immediately, I know that’s not the reason. She doesn’t care about what other people think of her. The news hurt her personally. She has feelings for me. I suspected that was the case, but this just confirms it.
I need to talk to her. I might be able to sneak off early, but I have to stay here for a little while at least and make sure the ball is going well. Then I’ll call her, and hopefully I’ll be able to sort out some of this mess.
Chapter Fourteen
Chessie
Lisa and Ria were both going to the local bar tonight to meet some friends, so when the uber pulls up and I go inside, I’m surprised to see Lisa sitting on the sofa, watching TV, a glass of wine in her hand.
She puts it down when she sees me and gets to her feet. “Chessie! What are you doing here?” She takes one look at my face and says, “Oh no, what happened?”
“Nothing.” Then I burst into tears.
“Babe…” She comes over and gives me a hug. “Aw, come on, it’s okay…”
“I’m not upset,” I sob. “I’m furious.”
“Oh God. What happened?”
I move back and rub my nose. “I’ll tell you in a minute. I want to get this fucking dress off.”
I go into my room, take the dress off, and throw it into a corner. I scoop my hair up into an untidy bun and pull on my PJs, go into the bathroom and remove my makeup with some wipes, then scrub my face hard with soap until my skin is red.
When I’m done, I go out to the kitchen. I retrieve a wine glass from the cupboard, take it into the living room, and sit beside Lisa on the sofa. She pours me a hefty glass from the open bottle of Sauvignon. The wine is the cheapest brand we can buy at the supermarket and doesn’t even come close to the champagne I was drinking earlier, but I don’t care and knock back a few mouthfuls. “Where’s Ria?”