FAKE DATING WITH BENEFITS MY BILLIONAIRE BOSS (Ophelia Corrigan) novel Chapter 96

CHAPTER 96

MIE

$5 won

The cab pulled up in front of my building, and I paid the driver with a tired wave, not even waiting for the change.

Saturday at the office had been a blur of contracts and emails, a futile attempt to drown myself in work so wouldn’t think about the night before.

It worked for a few hours. Now, as I walked down the sidewalk, exhaustion hit me like a truck.

The city never slept. Even at ten at night, New York hummed with an energy indifferent to my fatigue. And it was in the middle of that sea of lights and engines that I saw him.

Oliver.

He was staggering near the entrance of my building, tie loose, jacket wrinkled. The smell of cheap whiskey reached me before I could even think about how to get away.

I picked up my pace, determined to ignore him. To cross the street. To do anything but deal with him.

“Jamie!” His voice came out slurred, a hoarse rasp. “Jamie, wait!”

I didn’t wait. I kept walking, purse clutched against my chest, eyes fixed on the glass door.

Then I felt his fingers close around my arm with a force that made me stop.

“You’re gonna hear me out, you bitch!” he spat, yanking me hard. “You’re gonna hear me out!”

I turned to face him, heart pounding. “Let go of my arm, Oliver. Now.”

“My son is dead!” he yelled, and the pain in his voice was real, raw, but twisted by booze and rage. “He died because of you!”

“What are you talking about?” I tried to pull free, but his grip only tightened. “You’re drunk, Oliver.”

“It was you!” he roared, his face contorted inches from mine. “You humiliated Vanessa! You stressed her out with your accusations, and she lost the baby! It’s your fault, you piece of shit!”

“I didn’t cause anything!” The words came out in a desperate whisper, while the guilt I’d been trying to push away came crashing back full force.

He shoved me with a violence that caught me off guard. I stumbled backward and my head hit the corner of the mailbox with a dull thud. A sharp, hot pain exploded across my face.

“Hey! What the hell are you doing?!” An angry voice came from behind. A neighbor, Mrs. Gable, about sixty, appeared in the building doorway with a broom in her hand, brandishing it like a weapon. “Get out of here, you drunk! Get out or I’m calling the cops!”

Oliver backed off, eyes wide with panic. He muttered something unintelligible and stumbled away down the street until he disappeared around the corner.

15:39 Tue Sep 291 MT.

FAKE DATING WITH BENEFITS. MY BILLIONAIRE BOSS

Mrs. Gable ran up to me. “Honey, are you okay? My God, did he hurt you?”

m fic,” I stammered, still dizzy. “Thank you. Really, thank you.”

I walked into the building, my steps heavy. The pain throbbed in my face, but I barely felt it. What I felt was emptiness. A sensation that I was sinking, and there was no floor.

The moment I locked my apartment door, the tears I’d been holding back since the street finally fell.

I went straight to the bathroom and turned on the light, squinting against the brightness. I looked at myself in the mirror. The right side of my face was red, swollen. An ugly mark that promised to turn purple in the next few hours.

That’s when my phone buzzed on the sink. Simon.

I stared at the screen, his name burning into my vision. Not thinking, just reacting, I answered.

“Hey.” My voice came out hollow.

“Where are you? Mary already left. I’ve got the kids in the car. We’re gonna swing by and pick you up.” His voice was upbeat, even… affectionate. “Lily won’t stop asking if you can come to the park tomorrow.”

I closed my eyes. The image of Lily, with her smile, surfaced in my mind. And it was immediately replaced by the image of Oliver’s face, twisted in pain.

My son died because of you!

“No.” The word came out before I could stop it. “Don’t come.”

“What?” A pause. “Jamie, are you okay? Your voice…”

“I’m tired, Simon.” A lie. But it was the only thing I could say. “I worked all day. I just want to sleep.”

“I get it, but…” he pressed, his tone gentle. “I can rub your back. Never told you this, but I’m great at massages. You sleep a little, and I’ll take the kids to the park tomorrow morning, and then we can have lunch together.”

The offer was so sweet, so perfect, it physically hurt.

“Please, Simon.” I forced my voice to come out indifferent. The more distant I seemed, the fewer questions he’d ask. And I didn’t want him to come. Didn’t want Oliver anywhere near him again. Didn’t want Simon getting into more trouble because of me. “Don’t push it. I just want to rest. Alone.”

The silence on the other end was heavy. Long.

“Okay.” His voice lost its warmth, going quiet. “Okay. Get some rest.”

I hung up before he could hear the sound of my sob. I tossed the phone onto the couch, where I collapsed. I wrapped myself in a blanket, my whole body aching, my head pounding. I didn’t turn on the light, didn’t eat, didn’t do anything. I just lay there, in the dark, with the weight of guilt crushing me into the floor.

***

It was the sunlight that woke me. And the relentless sound of knocking at the door.

15:39 Tue Sep 29 MT.

FAKA DATING WITH BENEFITS: MY BILLIONAIRE BOSS

My body ached like I’d been hit by a car. My head, especially. I got up from the couch with a groan, limbs heavy and mouth dry.

The knocking continued, urgent, making my heart race.

“Jamie?” Simon’s voice came from behind the door. “Jamie, are you there? Open up.”

A wave of relief washed over me at the sound of his voice.

I tiptoed to the door and peeked through the peephole. Simon was there, with Lily in his arms and Sam and Jack beside him, park backpacks on their shoulders.

Then a thought hit me: they can’t see me like this.

My phone was on the couch, forgotten. I grabbed it with trembling hands and saw his messages.

“Picking you up at 10 so we can spend Sunday together.” (Sent at 8:45)

“We’re almost there. Open up for us.” (Sent at 9:55)

I took a deep breath, my throat tightening. I typed a quick, cold reply.

“Not home. Went to visit a friend.”

I hit send. Through the peeph ofole, I watched his phone buzz. He looked at my the screen. I saw his expression change. Confusion face,, then a disappointment he quickly masked.

He looked at the door dark one more time, as if he could see me through it. Then he sighed, turned, and guided the kids back to the elevator.

Lily looked back. “Uncle Simon, is Miss Jamie not here?”

“No, sweetie. She’s at a friend’s house.”

“Aw, man…” She let out a disappointed sigh.

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