it hurt like hell.
“I thought you wanted to help me.” My voice broke so I cleared my throat to get rid of the stinging sensation inside. “I never thought you had your own agenda. I thought you cared about me. That’s all.”
“I do.”
“No, you don’t.” I smiled bitterly and shook my head. “You used me.” A silent sob remained lodged in my throat. “You didn’t care if I got hurt, Chase,” I whispered. Tears began to gather in the corners of my eyes again.
I didn’t want to cry and yet I knew I couldn’t stop the tears that would soon fall.
“I need your inheritance to destroy him, Laurie.” Even though his voice was quiet and steady, I could hear the plea in his tone.
“At my expense,” I stated the obvious.
Chase reached for my hand, but I leaned back, pulling it out of his reach.
“Admit it,” I said angrily, the pain inside me sharp and raw. “You wanted revenge at my expense. Just say it. We both know it’s the truth.”
He took his time to reply, hesitating, as though his silence would make it all less real.
“It needed to be done,” he said slowly. “Even if I weren’t a part of this, even if things didn’t turn out the way they did between us, my brother would have made his move on you. It was either Kade or I.”
He made it sound like it was a positive thing. Like I could be passed around. Like I should be grateful it was he and not Kade.
The thought hurt me more than I cared to admit.
I had never felt so insulted in my life.
“So, it was either you or he,” I repeated, laughing darkly as I remembered how close I had been to going out with his brother. “Boy, I’m so spoiled with choice.” I grimaced. “Doesn’t Kade know we got married or why else would he be following me?”
Chase sighed and ran his hand through his silky hair. “I haven’t told him.”
I frowned. “Why not?”
He closed his eyes, his fingers pressing the bridge of his close. When he opened them again, his expression was hard. His eyes looked like stones, tearing down my wall. I could feel his hate for Clint seeping into my soul. “It’s not personal, Laurie. If you just tried to understand why I did it then—”
“Then what?” I cut him off. “I’d see your point? Trust you more?” I shook my head, ignoring the little voice inside my heart that begged me to give him a chance. “I’m sorry, but I didn’t sign up for this.”
I clutched my bag and squeezed into my shoes. “The conversation’s over. I’m not listening to you anymore. Tell the driver to stop the car.”
“No, I need you to listen,” he said calmly.
But I couldn’t. “Let me out, Chase.”
“We’ll be at the hotel in a few minutes.”
“I want to leave now!”
His lips tightened. “Laurie, you don’t even know where you are.”
“That’s not your problem,” I said harsher than intended. “Stop the car, Chase.”
“Please,” Chase said softly. “I can’t let you go before you understand.”
“Trust me, you were very clear when you said everything you did was out of revenge. What more is there to explain?” He remained silent. I nodded. “Exactly. There’s no point in wasting each other’s time. Now tell the driver to stop the car.”
When Chase didn’t move, I turned around and leaned over the seat to hammer against the divider in the hope the driver would hear me. “Stop the car.”
“The driver doesn’t speak English,” Chase said. His voice was calm, but I could hear the slightest hint of desperation in his tone. “Besides, I instructed him not to stop, no matter what happens. I’m afraid you’ll have to listen to me for a few more minutes.”
I stopped the hammering and turned to face him, my face a mask of fury. “You have no right to hold me here.”
“No, I don’t. That’s why I’m asking.” His response surprised me. “Please, Laurie, you haven’t heard it all. This is important. It involves our future.”
Not my future.
Our future.
“We don’t have a future,” I said dryly.
Even if I wanted to.
Even if I had believed it at some point.
“Believe it or not, we do have one. According to the contract, we have at least twelve months together.”
I let out a sarcastic laugh again.
That damn stupid contract.
That mistake was going to haunt me forever.
Chapter 14
If I had known that Chase was such a pain in the ass, I would never have hired him. Full stop.