Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 142

Chapter 142

Christian was still buttoning the last few buttons of his shirt when I opened the door to find Annie and Marcus on the other side. My sister burst in like a hurricane, all energy and excitement about her “important news,” while Marcus followed behind her, looking serious-so serious it clashed hilariously with her mood. It didn’t take long to notice the tension between them. They kept a polite distance, one that hadn’t existed before.

“Hey, sis!” Annie greeted, kissing my cheek before pausing midstep. Her eyes darted between me and Christian, her brows shooting up. “Okay, why do you two look like you just ran a marathon? And why does Christian look like he lost a fight with his hairbrush?”

My face went up in flames as I tried to smooth my hair.

“Annie,” I muttered, mortified.

“Ohhh,” she said, laughing when she saw Christian’s expression. “Got it. Sorry for the timing, but I swear this is important!”

“It better be,” Christian said under his breath, though his tone was playful as he ran a hand through his hopelessly messy hair.

“Can I get you something?” I asked, desperate to shift the focus. “Coffee? Water? Something to eat?”

“Coffee would be great,” Marcus said, dropping onto the couch where Christian and I had been sitting just minutes earlier. There was a stiffness in his posture that didn’t go unnoticed.

“I want to see what kind of weird stuff you’ve been eating lately,” Annie said, trailing me into the kitchen with her usual little-sister curiosity. “Matthew told me about your pregnancy cravings. He said Dad nearly had a heart attack when he saw you eating chocolate with sardines.”

I rolled my eyes as I started the coffee maker, trying to hide a grin.

“They’re not that weird. Just… creative combinations.”

“Zoey, chocolate and sardines isn’t creative. It’s a crime,” Annie said, opening the fridge like she lived there. “Oh my God, what is this?”

She’d found my bowl of vanilla ice cream with sliced pickles and mustard, spoon still inside.

“My late-night snack,” I said proudly. “It was delicious. Want to try?”

“Absolutely not,” Annie said with a horrified face that made me burst out laughing. “That’s worse than when you mixed tuna pizza with condensed milk.”

“Hey, I was eight!” I said, laughing. “And you ate it too!”

“Because I was seven and thought you were a genius,” she shot back, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl like it was the safer life choice. “Now I have taste buds-and self-respect.”

We returned to the living room with a tray of coffee and whatever cookies I’d managed to find in the pantry. Christian and Marcus were deep in conversation, their heads close together, voices low. The air in the room shifted as soon as we sat down-it was clear whatever they were discussing wasn’t lighthearted.

“Okay, enough with the serious stuff,” Annie said, settling into an armchair and taking a sip of coffee before turning her full attention to us. “First, I need to know-how are things between you two? Because honestly, you look… good. Really good.”

I exchanged a look with Christian, feeling the familiar warmth creep up my neck. He had that amused, knowing expression he always got whenever Annie decided to turn into an amateur relationship detective.

“We’re fine,” I said simply, hoping she’d let it go.

“Fine how?” Annie pressed, flashing that mischievous grin that always spelled trouble. “Fine like ‘we’re still figuring things out after all the chaos,’ or fine like ‘thank God we finally got a few minutes alone to remember why we got married’?”

“Annie!” I groaned, certain my face was the color of a ripe tomato.

“What?” she said innocently, clearly enjoying my embarrassment. “You’re married and expecting a baby. It’s only natural that you’d want to…” She stopped mid-sentence when she caught my horrified look. “Okay, okay. Changing the subject before you die of embarrassment.”

Christian chuckled quietly beside me, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter.

“Your sister is… direct,” he said, eyes glinting with amusement.

“Speaking of being direct,” Marcus cut in suddenly, setting his coffee cup down with a sharp clink that instantly drew everyone’s attention, “we have important news to share. And it’s not good.”

The mood in the room shifted in an instant. The air grew heavy, the easy warmth evaporating like it had never been there. Annie straightened in her chair, her playful expression gone. Christian leaned forward, instantly alert, his expression turning hard and focused. A nervous twist formed in my stomach..

I went quiet for a long, stunned beat as I processed the new information. If Alex truly had no idea his car was being used…

“Then Marcus’s theory was completely off,” I said at last, feeling a strange mix of relief and worry. “Alex didn’t come after Christian for the inheritance. He’s probably being used too, without knowing it.”

“Zoey,” Christian said, looking at me with an expression I recognized immediately as thinly veiled jealousy, “just because he might be innocent in all this doesn’t mean we should trust him.”

“I’m not saying we should trust him blindly,” I replied calmly, trying to keep my voice steady. “I’m saying that if he really doesn’t know what’s going on and he’s being manipulated, that could be a strategic advantage.”

“What kind of advantage?” Marcus asked, clearly interested in the possibility.

“Access to information,” I explained, my mind already working through the angles. “If Alex is being used by Elise without realizing it, he might have access to conversations, documents, plans he doesn’t even know are important. Information he doesn’t even realize he has.”

“Zoey, no,” Christian said immediately, his voice firm. “Do not even think about that. I will not let you go near him again.”

“Christian, be rational,” I insisted, touching his arm in an attempt to calm him. “Alex already suspects Elise. He said he’s filing for divorce. If I can get him to talk more about her behavior, about the people she’s involved with…

“No,” Christian repeated, even firmer. “I will not let you get involved in this any further. Especially not with him.”

“Why specifically not him?” I asked, though I already knew the answer

“Because it’s obvious he still has feelings for you,” Christian said without beating around the bush, brutal in his honesty. “Anyone with eyes can see that. And you’re pregnant, emotionally more vulnerable…”

“I am not vulnerable,” I protested, feeling my irritation flare. “And the fact that he still has feelings could be exactly the advantage we need to make him talk.”

Annie and Marcus exchanged uncomfortable looks, clearly wishing they were anywhere but in the middle of our marital argument.

“I know you won’t like this, Christian,” I said finally, choosing my words carefully, “but Alex is still our best option for getting information on Elise. I can get more out of him than any of you could.”