Chapter 38 Nancy
I SAT STIFFLY ON THE PLUSH WRAPAROUND SOFA, staring at the giant television. A game show featuring contestants seeking advice from clueless celebrities engulfed the screen. Not that I was taking much of it in. My mind was too busy replaying the confrontation with Alex on repeat.
The man was a consummate actor. The blank stare, the feigned confusion, the heartbreak in his eyes as I walked out the door. It was all so convincing, but that was how sociopaths were—all charm and no substance, using your weaknesses against you. And when I looked at it now, Alex had all the signs.
That he’d planned to keep me as his mistress while he took Mimi as a trophy wife was beyond belief.
The creep had lied to me from the very beginning, emotionally manipulating me to trust him, to care deeply about him, then he stomped all of it into the dirt.
But despite Alex making a fool out of me in public, I wasn’t going to drop to his level.
I wasn’t going to give ‘the duke’s heir’ the satisfaction of a reaction.
The truth of it was that he thought I was some naive girl from a housing estate who was easy to groom into the position he desired. He’d train me up like some plaything for his games, just like he’d tried to do to his many previous girlfriends. But Alex had underestimated me.
I imagined what his face would have looked like when he walked into the bedroom to find my blunt statement laid out for him. I don’t want you or anything you stand for. What did that fraud think when he saw it? Did he feel anything? To my frustration, the question sent a pang of guilt through me.
“Love, you okay?” Mum said from across the sofa.
“I’m fine,” I replied absentmindedly as I watched the contestant lose fifty thousand after some especially crap advice.
“Are you sure? You’re gripping that bottle very tight.”
I looked down to find a lump of crumpled plastic in my hand. “Sorry, I hadn’t noticed.”
“Look, love, I know Alex’s hurt you badly. I could bloody kill him for leading you on like that,” she flared and then sighed. “But keeping it inside ain’t gonna help you.”
“I will say more, but not right now. It’s too raw. I need space to get my head together.”
“That’s the issue, though. You won’t get space. You’ll see Alex at work tomorrow, and it might help to talk through everything that happened so you know how to approach it with him.”
“Oh, I know exactly how to approach it with him.” I crushed the plastic once more. “I’m never speaking to that asshole again!”
“How’s that even gonna work? You’re on the same floor as him. You’ll see each other most days.”
“I’ll make it work. The audit’s only a few more months, and then I’m out of there. I’m gonna keep it strictly professional like I should’ve done from day one.” I got up, needing to move, and paced to the kitchen for another drink.
The flowers Alex had sent that morning were sticking out the bin. White roses and dusky pink carnations eyed me mockingly as I passed. I attempted to press them down out of view, but they resisted, just like the pig who’d sent them.
When I’d turned my phone on for the first time that morning, I’d received over fifty messages from Alex begging me to speak to him.
He was nothing if not persistent, and I wondered why he bothered.
Was it because he felt shamefaced, guilty even?
That seemed unlikely. Maybe he was simply desperate to recover all the time and money he’d ‘invested’ in me.
I should have known better after what I’d been through. Life wasn’t a romance novel. People lied, cheated, and exploited each other to get what they wanted. I should’ve stuck with my book boyfriends. At least they were reliable.
After a tear-strewn cup of tea, over which I’d given Mum the abridged version of Alex’s deception, I needed a shower, but no matter how hard I scrubbed myself, I wouldn’t wash clean. Mimi’s words from the night before were etched on.
Alex’s always used number eight more like a fuck pad… I assume he’s already offered it to you?
The steaming water from the new boiler scalded my face, but I relished the feeling.
Alex had treated me like an escort, lavishing me with gifts in exchange for on-tap, no-strings company and sex.
He’d destroyed my trust after I’d promised myself I’d never let that happen again.
I felt despair looming close, but I refused it, instead moulding it into defiance.
I needed to erase every trace of him, which meant going to the apartment to get my things and returning his tainted gifts.
I could’ve sold the dresses, shoes, and diamonds for a small fortune.
Not to mention the cash I would’ve reaped from selling my story when the interest in us was at a peak.
Most folks would roll their eyes and tell me to take what I could get, but I couldn’t face doing it.
Selling those things felt like selling my dignity, and it had already cost me years of pain to get that back. I wasn’t about to lose it again.
With my mind made up, I got ready and called Kim, hoping she would go with me as Mum had hair appointments all day, but I’d forgotten about her date with William.
How was it that two brothers could be so different from one another?
William had been a gentleman to me, in stark contrast to Alex, who’d ignored me for the entire night and then thrown a tantrum when things hadn’t gone his way.
I’d heard every word he’d said on the doorstep to Mum, as he desperately tried to manipulate the truth.
Kim listened as I shed more tears, becoming angry on my behalf.
It was gratifying. But in the end, I called Jemima, bracing myself for the usual “I told you so, li’l sis” she liked to dole out in her wisdom.
Thankfully, AJ answered her phone, and when I told him the bare facts, he was so angry that he offered to take us to number eight immediately.
Yet, even on the spur of the moment, I couldn’t escape Alex.
Not there and not at work. It was dangerous ground.
I couldn’t let myself get dragged back into a toxic…whatever the hell we were. I deserved a damn sight better than being someone’s mistress. That was why my new rule was no contact. It was a matter of survival. I had to ghost him to protect myself from doing anything impulsive.
Alex knew precisely how to lure me with his charming nature and deliciously skilled body.
His deep, commanding tone would be like drops of potion in my ear, whittling my resolve a little more with each contact.
But he couldn’t work his sinister allure if I entirely broke contact.
I needed to be firm. I needed to show I meant business!
“Y’alright, love?” Mum asked.
I realised I’d been standing still, looking into space for the last few minutes. “Would you have the energy to restyle my hair this evening?”
Her frown became a smile. “’Course, what did you have in mind?”
“I want a completely different look. Something strong and straightforward.”
She rose and wordlessly looked at my head for a minute, probably reading my aura. “I know just the thing.”
The following lunchtime, I sat across from Ayesha in Toverton Tower’s staff canteen.
We’d finished the Monday team meeting just before midday, meaning I’d managed to avoid Alex for the entire morning.
I’d parked my motorcycle in the public bays rather than the basement, where we were more likely to bump into each other, and rushed through the lobby straight into a lift up to forty-eight.
But the avoidance tactics were only going to last so long.
I rewrapped my half-eaten sandwich, the weight in my stomach replacing my appetite.
“Your new hairstyle is dope, by the way.” Ayesha sipped a frothy coffee she’d splurged on.
“Thanks, I needed a change.” I felt across the eight tight rows that travelled back from my brow all the way down to my neckline. They looked pure business.
“So you and Alex are really done?”
“Yep, turns out it was all a lot of heartache for nothing. That’ll teach me for trying to get back out there.”
“You can’t just cast off all relationships because of one bad apple. You deserve to be happy.”
“I am happy.” I folded my arms. “On my own and with my friends and family. I don’t need a man.”
“Of course you don’t,” Ayesha trod carefully. “But that doesn’t mean decent guys aren’t out there.”
I shifted in my chair, wanting to change the subject. “Your optimism makes me think someone had a good date last week.”
She grinned. “Yes, I did! Rohan is everything I’m looking for in a partner. He’s hot, kind, generous, smart, and his kiss! It made my head spin. Oh, and he—”
“Hold on, back up a minute. You guys kissed?”
“Yes, Nancy, I’m not a saint!”
“I dunno, do I?” I laughed. “He’s into you too, then?”
“He called me the following evening, and we chatted for over an hour. He’s asked me to go with him to an escape room on Friday.”
“So he’s invited you to a locked room to solve a mystery.”
“Hey, we could just spend the hour kissing some more, and I’d be happy.” Ayesha tipped her head side to side with relish before taking another sip of syrupy coffee.
“Oh really?”
“What? I like his mind too. He’s the full package.”
“Well, you may need more than two dates to find that out.” I raised an eyebrow, and Ayesha laughed in outrage.
At the end of lunch, we grabbed our things and made for the lift, my anxiety building as we rose in the car.
In a few minutes, I’d be stuck on the top floor watching Alex go about his day as if nothing had occurred.
He hadn’t tried to contact me since our altercation at number eight.
Clearly, he had no trouble casting off our relationship in less than a day.
Why would he? He only considered us as a transaction—another one of his business deals.
Ayesha stepped out on forty-eight. “I’m here if you want to chat.”
“Thanks, babe. Let’s get lunch again soon, and have a great second date if I don’t see you before.”