Chapter 46 Waste of Breath
ALICE
I shook my head and folded my arms across my chest.
God, I didn't want to go through all this again, but Benjamin was really pissing me off right now. How dare he walk toward me and accuse me of following him around? As if I was supposed to guess that he was here to begin with!
Of course, I had to remind him that I never cheated on him and he got it all wrong. I couldn't stand the fact that he was still accusing me of something I never did. It was insulting, and frankly, I would never pass up the opportunity of calling him a dumbass right to his face.
"I don't know why I'm bothering even explaining all this to you," I remarked bitterly. "It's not like you'll believe me."
Benjamin's expression was solemn when he proclaimed, "Emma isn't capable of doing something this malicious, Alice."
The laugh that escaped my lips was bitter and mocking. "Give me a damn break. How would you even know if you haven't known her for long? Hell, she fooled me, too. It took years for me to figure it out. I suppose the same will happen to you. Evil can't stay suppressed for too long. When she shows you her true colors, you won't know what hit you."
Benjamin narrowed his eyes at me and stepped toward me. "You're going to stand there and tell me you're not banging your boss? Emma told me it's all everyone talks about at—"
"Sure. Emma, Emma, Emma," I interrupted. "You sound like a fool, Benjamin. I look at you and can't believe that I used to admire and love you! You broke my fucking heart. You..."
I trailed off. I couldn't continue, not right away. But Benjamin didn't walk away and I had to get these words off my chest. I'd kept them inside me for too long. In a sense, I'd never gotten that closure I needed. It made no sense for me to feel so hurt when he showed me his true colors, but this was my reality.
Denying it was killing me.
"Heartbreak?" Benjamin said in a low voice. "You want to talk to me about broken hearts, Alice? Do you know what it was like for me, finding you with another man's tongue down your throat?"
"It was a setup, Benjamin!" I exclaimed. "For the love of God! How many times do I have to tell you that!? Emma framed me, you idiot! I was sending you the nude the way we always did! She organized for you to show up, didn't she? She's the one who told you where I was, right? Well, she knew I was going to meet you. Did she mention that? Of course, not. Jesus, Benjamin. You were my first. Do you think women who save themselves for the right guy go around banging their bosses? Does that make any sense to you?"
Benjamin turned his face away and didn't answer me. I should've stopped. Really, I should've. This got humiliating enough and it wasn't like we were going to go anywhere because he was brainwashed by Emma.
Hell, I wouldn't want him back even if he suddenly realized I was telling the truth.
"My parents think I'm a slut," I spat. "They stopped talking to me for weeks because of what you did!"
"I was mad," he said lamely. "Can you blame me?"
"You were just being a dick. Emma fed you lies and you ate them all, didn't you?"
Again, he stayed silent, and I finally decided to walk away. But I froze mid-step. A wave of anger hit me from out of nowhere, and I turned right back around and faced him again. The finger I pointed at him trembled. "I want you to stop following me around. Emma is a big girl; she doesn't need you going around to protect her. If you come close to me again, I'll call the police."
His face was merely inches away from mine now. "It's my duty to keep her safe, and you're harassing her nonstop."
"That bitch doesn't even exist to me," I claimed. "The only time I remember we still work in the same building is when she tries to corner me and rub it in my face that she got you. Do you know what the one thing she wants the most is? Why did she decide to create an uncomfortable situation between my boss and me? Because she wanted to have me fired."
"And why didn't he fire you?" Benjamin asked angrily. "You crossed the line, yet he met you in that office, right? So...what? He was attracted to you? That's why he met you there? You expect me to believe that?"
I shook my head at him. "That's how it happened. Prior to that night, I hated his guts. Emma knew it. You did, too. He was a pain in my ass. I wouldn't have dreamt of having an affair with him."
"You're speaking in the past tense. So, things are different now?"
The answer should have been a clear 'no', but when I opened my mouth to say it, it didn't come out. It didn't feel right. I wasn't sure why. Maybe I suddenly decided that I didn't owe him an explanation and I wanted him to think whatever he wanted. Or maybe it just wasn't true, and we were having an honest, open conversation. I didn't want to lie.
So, what I told him was, "Eat shit, Benjamin."
He grabbed my arm to stop me when I stepped away from him, but he didn't have a chance to say anything because a voice behind us said, "Miss Rhodes."
God. The way my heart dropped to my toes had to be considered a health scare. I whipped my head around to look at Theodore Linden-Hawthorne, and my heart dropped.
Was he...listening to our conversation?
Benjamin released me automatically and stepped away. Mr. Linden-Hawthorne's eyes were on me as he said, "The conference is about to start."
I nodded and started toward him, genuinely speechless. When I reached his side, he threw a hard look at Benjamin, and then we turned away together, walking side by side.
Though he didn't say a word to me, I knew he heard everything.
I knew it, but had no way of proving it.
And that...was mortifying.