The Stand-In Who Burned the Script novel Chapter 47

Though this was exactly the kind of understanding behavior he used to demand from her, Jonah instinctively despised her tone. His voice hardened. "Her condition is stable; she doesn't need me to pick her up. I'm your boyfriend, so it's only right that I come get you."

Oh, so now he remembered he was her boyfriend?

Vivian leaned back on the hotel sofa, a faint, mocking smile dancing on her lips. She drawled, "I drove myself. And since we're leaving for Switzerland tomorrow, there's a rush project at work I need to oversee. I might be working late, so don't wait up."

Of course, Jonah wasn't planning on waiting up for her; in fact, he secretly hoped she wouldn't come back at all.

Predictably.

A two-second silence hung on the line before the man said in a low voice, "Alright then. Make sure you get some rest."

Ending the call, Vivian stared blankly at the string of numbers on her screen, tapping her phone lightly against her hand.

After a moment.

She opened her messaging app and quickly typed out a text.

She scheduled it to send later.

Then, she pulled out her SIM card, snapped it in half, and tossed it into the trash can.

All she needed was a good night's sleep. Tomorrow, she would board the flight to Northside, utterly destroying both Dominic and Jonah's twisted hopes.

Back at the house, Jonah had showered but couldn't seem to fall asleep.

He wandered downstairs and sat in the living room for a while, inexplicably disturbed by how maddeningly empty the entire space felt.

He rubbed his temples and called for the housekeeper.

"Did Vivian mention when she planned on replacing the things she threw out?"

The housekeeper hesitated. "She... didn't say anything about replacing them."

"Excuse me?"

Jonah's hand froze. "Didn't she say she was getting new ones?"

"I... she didn't give me any instructions. I don't know, sir."

The housekeeper anxiously wrung her apron, completely unsure of how to respond and terrified that her boss would lose his temper and demand she return the items.

She had already sold them... how was she supposed to get them back?

Jonah's face darkened. "You're dismissed."

"...Yes, sir."

Once she was gone, the living room fell silent again. Jonah felt a sudden, inexplicable irritation looking at the room, even though its current sparse state was exactly the minimalist style he had originally preferred.

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