She Was Never Just the Billionaire’s Wife (Natasha and Chase) novel Chapter 183

(Piper)

I was so sure Nathanial and Gloria were over once and for all after he stood her up the last time.

She told him they should just be friends.

She finally saw the truth.

That he’d never put her on the pedestal she deserves.

But here we are, a few weeks later, and she’s letting him off the hook again.

Putting her heart on the line for another chance at happiness with my step-brother.

Natasha pleaded his case and Gloria decided this wasn’t the same as Sonia’s contrived emergencies.

Lily was sick. Natasha found out she was his sister.

He could be forgiven for being overwhelmed by the enormity of the situation.

Just this once.

But it’s not just this once. It’s a pattern. And Gloria has to end this before he breaks her heart again.

I’m at the dressing table in a silk robe and bare face because there’s nobody coming and nobody to perform for.

The lipstick on the marble in front of me is a tube of the same shade of red I’ve been buying since I was twenty-two.

Habit, not vanity.

I pick my phone up and scroll to Gloria's last text, sent Sunday at half past four.

It’s Tuesday now.

Having dinner on Tuesday with N. He’s picking the place. Will report back x.

She told me as if I was a friend.

Since we met that morning for breakfast she’s been checking in regularly.

Meeting me for coffee.

I’d be over the moon if it wasn’t so painfully obvious that she’s moved past the thing that’s been lying between us for half a lifetime.

She’s chosen and she didn’t pick me.

Well. I’m not giving up that easily.

Nathanial doesn’t deserve Gloria, even if I can’t have her.

I close the thread.

I call Clarice first.

It rings once. I hang up before the second ring. Straight into call log. Time-stamped at six oh seven.

That's the receipt. Now we move on.

I scroll to Nathanial and press call.

He picks up on the third ring.

"Piper. Are you all right?"

No clearer sign is needed that we don’t contact each other frivolously.

He sees my name and assumes some disaster has befallen me.

"I'm fine. I don't want to alarm you."

A pause on the line.

"About what?"

"It's about Clarice."

He doesn't say anything. I let the silence sit to give him time to imagine the worst.

"My father’s extremely worried about her, Nathanial. He hasn’t been able to get hold of her for the past two days. I’ve called four times and it rings out to voicemail. I called again just now. Same thing. My father last spoke to her on Sunday and said she'd sounded depressed."

He breathes out.

"Piper. We're on the outs. She knows what I want from her. She's choosing not to give it. This may just be her way of forcing me to come and see her."

"You’re probably right. I just... Nathanial. What if she does something? What if she hurts herself and we both know we knew she was alone and we chose to stay where we were because we were busy?"

I hear him breathing.

"I would go myself," I say, "But I’m at a work thing I can’t get out of."

I look at my own reflection in the mirror.

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