Lethal Wedding (Wedlocked Trilogy Book 2) - Charlotte Byrd Page 0,16

get a job there but then things just went to shit.

“And now, you’re engaged? To my boss? My friend here told me that something was probably going on even before we broke up.

“Is that true? I never thought that you would be the kind to cheat, but what the hell do I know about you anyway? I’m just a broke writer without a dollar to my name and now probably not even a job. And you? You stand to inherit a billion-dollar fortune. Or is it a few billions? Who can keep track? And now you’re marrying another billionaire?

“So, is that what was going on this whole time? Were you just slumming it with me? Were you just dating me to get a rise out of your parents, to make them a little angry? Is this all that we ever were?

“I want to ask you to call me back, but I sort of suspect that you probably won’t. So let me just say that my feelings for you were always real. And if you lied to me and cheated on me, then that’s on you. Maybe I was wrong about who you were all along. Have a good life."

10

Henry

The following day I get a call from Franklin. I see his name on the screen and my chest tightens.

Did she tell him that I left that message?

What do I say if she did?

I’m tempted to answer and immediately accuse him of stealing my girlfriend, but I force myself to keep my anger in check.

The only thing that I have going for me right now is this job and like it or not Franklin is still my boss.

“Hello?” I say into the phone.

“Hey there," he says in his peppy voice. “Long time no chat.”

“Yeah, I meant to get back to you about that last email but I just got really busy.”

Franklin is the type of guy who likes to handle a lot of things over the phone rather than via text or email.

We talk a little bit about work and then the weather. When we reach a lull in the conversation, I finally bring it up.

I debate whether I should but my curiosity and my need to know the truth gets the better of me.

“Congratulations on your engagement,” I say, completely out of the blue.

“Um, thank you,” he stutters. I have managed to catch him by surprise.

“How did you…?" he asks, letting his voice drop off.

“Well, you did that interview with the Chronicle and I saw the video on YouTube.”.

“Yes, of course.”

“It’s not every day that an heiress to a massive fortune marries another billionaire, right? And now I hear that you were also in negotiations to make an offer on Tate Media?"

“I guess some things are hard to keep secret, huh?" he asks.

“Well, you seem to do a pretty good job of it. I mean, I had no idea that you were the founder of an OMS.”

“Yeah, sorry about that," Franklin says. “I wanted to get to know everyone without you knowing who I was…in the Undercover Boss sort of way.”

I’ve never seen that show but apparently that’s a thing that some CEOs do.

“You understand, of course?”

I give him a slight nod but say nothing.

“Henry?”

“Yeah, I’m here,” I say quickly. "Yes, of course, you don’t owe me an explanation.”

“Actually, that’s not entirely true," Franklin says with a deep sigh. "I should have told you about Aurora.”

My mouth is parched. I run my tongue over my chapped lips and say nothing.

Suddenly, my phone rings and I see that he’s trying to connect with me over FaceTime.

“I just really wanted to tell you this in person,” Franklin says after I click Accept.

I don’t want to see him and suddenly I am very aware of how worn out and disheveled I look in comparison to him with his perfectly coiffed hair and tailored suit.

Franklin spins in his chair and I see the expanse of the New York skyline behind him in the floor-to-ceiling windows that grace his office.

“You’re one of the best people that I have working for me. I feel like we really made a connection that goes beyond boss – employee, over these last few months,” Franklin says, peering into my phone.

I give him a slight nod and sit back against the old squeaky couch in my hotel room along a busy, industrial highway.

“Yes, I appreciate you saying that. I have enjoyed working for this company a lot and I really like doing the podcast and working on all of these stories.”

“Well,