Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 241

Chapter 241

My feet carried me away from the terrace before I even realized what I was doing.

Away from the stunned stares and the heavy silence Alexandra had left behind like a grenade. I found a side staircase at the back of the mansion that led down to the garden. A quiet comer far from the noise and the people.

I sat on the cold marble step, the chill of the stone cutting through the heat of humiliation still burning in my face.

Tears threatened, but I forced them back. I wasn’t giving Alexandra that satisfaction. I drew a slow breath and tried to steady the tremor in my hands, the tight ache in my chest from a mix of shame and anger.

“Anniel”

Zoey’s voice echoed down the hallway. Worried. Determined. I heard her heels tapping against the marble as she searched for me.

“Annie, where are you?””

“Here,” I answered, my voice thinner than I meant.

A few seconds later she appeared, her dress brushing around her legs as she moved toward me. The look on her face told me she wasn’t just worried. She was furious for me.

“There you are,” she said softly as she gathered her skirt and sat beside me on the cold step.

We stayed silent for a few minutes. Just listening to the distant hum of the party continuing without us. Zoey didn’t push or ask questions. She just sat with me. It was exactly the kind of quiet support I needed. My body relaxed a little just from having her next to me.

“That woman is a snake,” Zoey said at last. Her voice was low, but seething. “What she did up there was cruel and calculated.”

“It was,” I said, fiddling with the hem of my dress. “And the worst part is… she didn’t lie.”

“Annie,” Zoey said, her tone shifting into something more serious. “I know about you and Nate. I know about the plane. I know he’s your boss and that it’s complicated. But what I didn’t know is how deep this runs for you.”

I let out a long breath. A weight slid off my shoulders. There was no point denying anything anymore. Zoey had put every piece together.

“I’m not even sure I fully understand what I feel,” I admitted as I finally looked at her. “I don’t know if it’s infatuation or chemistry or just me being stubborn. But I can’t pretend there isn’t something there.”

“Of course there is,” Zoey said gently as she tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “Anyone with eyes can see the tension between you two.”

“I’m trying to move on,” I said, the frustration of the last few months bubbling up. “I go out with other men. I try to focus on work. I try to act like it doesn’t matter when he brings me Verdanian coffee or when our eyes meet in the hallway. But nothing works. It’s like he’s rooted himself in my head.”

I paused and pressed my hands to my face.

“And now, after what Alexandra said, everyone will be whispering about it like it’s tabloid gossip. It’s going to be the office topic for weeks. I wish I could say I don’t care, but I do.”

Zoey took my hand and squeezed.

“It’s because you’re still completely tangled up in this with Nate,” she said with that brutally honest big-sister instinct. “You’re trying to act like it doesn’t matter, like you can be just professional. But it matters. A lot.”

I sighed and bit my lower lip because she was right. Painfully right.

“Maybe you’re right. Or maybe I’m just desperate for any escape so I don’t lose my mind.”

“What do you mean?” Zoey asked, frowning. “You’re talking about Henry. As a distraction?”

I shook my head fast.

“No. Not Henry. Someone I met on a dating app.”

Zoey placed a hand on my shoulder and nudged me to look at her.

“Annie, listen to me.” Her voice dropped into that older sister wisdom I always ended up needing whether I liked it or not. “You have to follow your heart. Even if it’s messy. Even if it’s confusing. Even if no one else understands it. But what you definitely cannot do is let Alexandra win by knocking you down like this.”

“What do you mean?”

“She wants exactly this,” Zoey said with absolute certainty. “She wants you to run and hide and feel small. She wants you to disappear from Nate’s life so she can take over whatever game she’s playing. Don’t give her that satisfaction. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

I took in her words slowly. She was right. Alexandra had done it on purpose and she knew exactly the wound she aimed for. And I reacted exactly the way she wanted me to. Running. Hiding. Ashamed.

“You’re right,” I said, feeling a spark of steel form in my chest. “I’m not giving her that.”

Zoey held out her hand and helped me stand from the cold step.

“That’s it,” she said with a proud smile. “You’re a Bennett. We don’t run from a fight. Even if chaos seems to run after us…” She laughed.

I took a deep breath, smoothed my dress, and ran my fingers through my hair to make sure everything was in place. My posture straightened. My chin lifted just a little.

“Let’s go,” I said. My voice held more confidence than I felt.

“Let’s go,” Zoey echoed, linking her arm through mine with quiet solidarity.

We walked side by side back toward the hall. Our heels clicked in sync along the marble floor. I still didn’t know how I would deal with Nate. Or Alexandra. Or Henry. Or any of the emotional mess this night had unleashed.

But one thing I knew for sure. I wasn’t hiding anymore. At least not tonight.