Page 161 of The Billionaire's Secret

"You believe that?"

She holds my gaze, "I do, Victoria. Saint’s madly in love with you. I’ve never seen a man more besotted. Sure, he may be unorthodox in the way he shows it, but you have to admit, it’s romantic that he’s been so… Forceful."

I throw back my head and laugh.

The couple glances at me again, then move away, putting more distance between us. Good.

Too bad, Saint hadn’t gotten the memo as well.

"Keep kidding yourself that way, girlfriend— Oh, I forgot, you’re not really my friend, are you?" I rise to my feet.

"Please, V, don’t be like that."

I turn to leave.

"I admit Saint prompted us to befriend you. Our friendship may have started out that way, but we've all grown to like you... Hell, you've become my BFF so damn quickly..."

I pause, then turn to glance at her, "BFF?" I chew on my lower lip.

"I swear." She holds up her hand.

"I want to believe you; I do." I shift my weight from foot to foot. "But imagine if you were in my place and you found that your... Uh... The man you're interested in goes behind your back and gets to the women you think are your friends. What would you think of it?"

"I..." she blinks rapidly, "I'd think he cares for me... A lot."

I scoff, "Wait until it’s your turn and one of those alphaholes sets his sights on you. I’ll be sure to ask you then, how it feels... Then again, I probably won’t be around."

"Oh, pfft," she waves a hand in the air. "Of course, you’ll be around. And I’m not the settling type. I intend to focus on myself. I’ve planned a retreat to rediscover myself," she beams.

I squint at her, "What do you mean?"

"I am going to take a few weeks off over Christmas. I'm going away to an isolated cabin in the countryside. It’s owned by the Seven, and it’s one of the things Saint promised me in return for…"

I throw up my hands, "Jesus, I can't believe you agreed to that."

"I knew I shouldn't have taken him up on that offer." She blinks, "I'll refuse him; I won't go to the cabin. In fact, I'll tell him I don’t want any credit on the cakes and desserts I provided for the wedding party."

I scan her features.

She wrings her fingers together, "Shit, I’m sorry, V… I really didn't think it would upset you this much."

Maybe it's me. Maybe I am overreacting. Everything is running away from me, this entire sequence of events moving too fast for me. I hunch my shoulders. I feel so alone—so damn on my own. Nina has always been there for me. And she isn’t here... and I have to go through with this sham of a fake wedding. It is the only way to keep on track, and complete what I came here to do. She'd be free and it would all have been worth. It would, right?

"V," Isla approaches me. "I'm sorry."

I draw in a breath.

"Please tell me that you're not angry with us."

I sigh.

"Please... p-l-eee-ase," Amelie singsongs.

This woman! I may not have known her long, but her happy-go-lucky nature is a thing of beauty. She wears her heart on her sleeve, hadn't blinked an eye before inviting me into her home. If there is one thing I know, it’s that when I need her most, Amelia will be there to help me, just like Nina had been.

"Fine," I mutter.

She whoops and throws her arms around me. "OMG! Thank you, V. Thank you. Everything is going to work out now. I promise you. Saint loves you. He really does."