“Or did all kinds of kinky things to keep him interested.”
“Thanks for that mental picture,” Bella moaned.
“No problem.”
She shook her head. “A billionaire? You’re serious? You looked up the right guy?”
“Yeah. Totally. I’m sure. Look for yourself.”
“I didn’t even bother checking.”
“You didn’t look him up?”
“No, I said that.”
“Right. Well… that’s awesome. I mean, you landed your sister’s ex, stuck it to your family and now you’re with some rich guy who can give you the world. What more is there?”
“That’s what my sisters would probably say.” Bella exhaled loudly. “I think there’s a lot more. First of all, neither of our families know. We’re not going to tell anyone anytime soon for obvious reasons. Also, we’re not together, so there isn’t anything to talk about.”
“You’re not together?” John scoffed. “What’s with the seeing each other every single weekend and the moping around and pining around the house the rest of the time? I’ve seen more than my fair share of people and I can tell you, you guys are so into each other. You’re seeing each other. I think it’s real, even if you don’t want to admit it to yourself. I know you’ve dated a few losers in your time, okay, a lot of losers and assholes, but this guy seems nice. So what if he’s rich? That’s a huge bonus in my books. I wish I could meet a rich lady and she’d take care of me.”
“Jesus,” Bella cursed. “That’s also a mental picture I don’t want to consider.”
John chuckled to himself. He seemed completely oblivious to the sea of chaos currently going on inside her body. Her head and her chest were a mess. Both in disagreement with each other.
“So, do you need that bag?”
“Uh- let me get back to you on that.”
“I’m going to work in half an hour. Just let me know before then. If not, I’ll find it anyway and set it out for you. I’ll set it in the hallway.”
“Okay,” Bella responded absently. She got lost in her own thoughts and wasn’t even aware of John leaving, which he must have done because when she looked up at the doorway, he was no longer there.
She let out another long, audible exhale. Right from the start, she’d known what she was doing was wrong. It was a mistake and it couldn’t last. Their families would never give their blessing. Not that she needed her parent’s consent or praise, but she figured that what Rhett’s mom thought meant a lot to him. She knew he hadn’t told her. There was also the whole thing about her not doing commitment. She wasn’t looking for a relationship. She didn’t want to be in one. She hadn’t really meant to get involved with Rhett. It kind of just happened. And kept on happening.
She had to put an end to it. Bella knew Rhett had money, but she had no idea how much. She thought that he maybe made a few hundred grand a year. Enough to keep her gold-digging sister manicured and in fancy clothes. Maybe that was mean, but Sarah kind of walked right into it.
Bella wasn’t going to do the same. She wasn’t going to be with Rhett and have everyone say that she was just doing it for the money, especially when he treated her or bought her a gift or anything. She’d never wanted to be like her sisters. It wasn’t about the money for her. She was proud that she was able to provide for herself, even if it wasn’t always much and the things she had weren’t overly nice and her car was older and her condo was in a transitional neighborhood and to really afford it, she had to have a roommate.
She wasn’t going to sell out. Even if she was with Rhett and she wasn’t truly selling out, her family would see it that way. Everyone would see it that way.
That road wasn’t one she was willing to go down. Not after spending her whole life trying to be independent. She had her pride.
Rhett had never told her that he had that kind of money. He obviously didn’t want her to know. Maybe it wasn’t an issue for him. Maybe he didn’t even think about telling her because he thought she already knew. God, whatever the reason, she couldn’t go to Phoenix. She had to stop seeing him.
She always knew that it had to end. She’d just kept putting it off because it felt… strangely amazing. Good in a way she didn’t know good could be. Being with Rhett was like a new definition of the word.
When she was with him, she felt hopeful for the first time in a long time. She shouldn’t have. She knew they were running on borrowed time. That every single time together should have been the last.