FAKE DATING WITH BENEFITS MY BILLIONAIRE BOSS (Ophelia Corrigan) novel Chapter 134

CHAPTER 134

MON

“Permission?”

I let out a short laugh, humorless.

“Jesus Christ, Jamie.”

“What?”

“I’m your future husband, Jamie. You wanted a venue? You should’ve told me. If that place mattered to you. I would’ve found a way to get a date. That’s what money, connections, and influence are for when you’ve got all three.”

She stared at me like I’d just confirmed her exact point.

“Do you hear how insufferably arrogant that sounds?”

“It’s arrogant if it’s a lie.”

“Oh my God.”

“What? I have resources. You know that.”

“That’s exactly why I didn’t tell you! I wanted this moment to be authentic and enjoyable. But it seems like you clearly want to turn this wedding into a power display.”

Her voice rose.

I stayed silent.

Jamie threw her arms open.

“I didn’t want to say, ‘Simon, I liked this place, and then watch you make three phone calls, buy a date, pressure someone, offer enough money to fix everything in twenty minutes. I wanted to look. I wanted to get excited. I wanted to walk into a place and picture our wedding. I wanted to enjoy that moment.”

“With your intern?”

Silence fell.

The second the words left my mouth, I knew they were bullshit.

Her eyes went hard.

“He’s not just my intern.”

“You know what I meant.”

“I understood perfectly.”

16

29

O

G

10

TIL

O

FAKA DATING WITH BENEFITS MY BILLIONAIRE BOSS

“Jamie-

han knew the owner. That’s why he was there.”

“I know.”

“Doesn’t seem like it.”

“I’m not accusing you of anything.”

“Then stop talking like I did something wrong by visiting a venue with a colleague.”

“It’s not about Ethan.”

“You just made it about Ethan.”

I dragged both hands down my face.

“Fuck. No. What pisses me off is you thinking you need to build an important part of our life and only call me when it’s ready for the final presentation. Didn’t I say I wanted to be involved? Damn it! Is it that hard for you to understand that?”

She went quiet.

“I wanted to be involved,” I continued. “Not fix everything for you. Be involved. There’s a difference.”

Jamie looked away for a moment before coming back to me.

“You just insinuated that I wanted Ethan’s company. So you don’t trust me?”

That hit me square in the chest.

“That’s not what I meant. I trust you, Jamie. Without reservations.” I ran a hand over my face, reining in the irritation. “But I don’t trust that kid. And finding out you asked him to hide something from me that

involved our wedding? Yeah, that pissed me off. Not because I think you’d do something with him. Because I should’ve been the one doing that with you.”

I took a deep breath.

My gaze dropped to the screenshots on the monitor.

There was a bigger argument there, but there was also a concrete problem.

And that problem couldn’t wait.

“Have you let anyone use your phone recently?”

Jamie frowned.

“No.”

“Think.”

“I’m thinking.”

15:53 Tue Sep 29 ) MT.

FAKE DATING WITH BENEFITS MY BILLIONAIRE BOSS

“Did anyone grab your phone? At the office, here, in the car? Did you unlock it and hand it to someone?”

She opened her mouth.

Stopped.

It was quick.

Too quick for anyone else to notice.

I noticed.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“You remembered something.”

“Nothing that makes sense.”

“Jamie.”

She shook her head.

“I didn’t let anyone use my phone.”

I held her gaze for a few seconds.

There was something there.

Not exactly a lie.

Information she’d considered and dismissed before handing it to me.

I could push.

I didn’t.

Not yet.

“Change your password,” I said. “Now. And don’t reuse any old ones.”

“I know. I know someone who’s good with this kind of thing. I think he can figure out how they got access to my phone.”

“Good.”

“Good.”

Another silence.

Worse this time.

Jamie grabbed her bag from the armchair.

3/6

29

O

G

10

O

<

12:53 Tue Sep 29 MT

FAKE DATING WITH BENEFITS MY BILLIONAIRE BOSS

“I’m sleeping out tonight.”

whole body went still.

“Where?”

I didn’t raise my voice.

Didn’t need to.

She looked at me.

“My mom’s.”

I nodded once.

I wanted to say there was no need.

I wanted to say that apartment was hers too.

I wanted to say we weren’t walking out of that office until we figured this out.

But Jamie wasn’t someone I could trap in a conversation just because I hated the way she was ending it.

So I stayed where I was.

“You want me to handle the Whitmore House thing?”

She let out a small, incredulous laugh.

“I’m asking if you want me to do something. About the house. About the date. About anything else.”

“No.”

The answer was immediate.

“Okay.”

She walked to the door.

My hand clenched at my side.

I didn’t go after her.

Jamie opened the door and paused for half a second.

Maybe she expected me to say something.

Maybe I was imagining it.

“Goodnight, Simon.”

“Goodnight.”

4/6

29

G

10

O

Бер су

FAKE DATING WITH BENEFITS MY BILLIONAIRE BOSS

She left.

sear

eard her footsteps down the hallway.