FAZER LOGINChapter 7 JoyeStephen’s name lit up my old phone non-stop. Actually, it had been that way for a while now, since I began making the calls.I sat on the living-room couch with a glass of orange juice, watching the screen explode with notifications. Missed calls. Voicemails. A flood of text messages that grew more unhinged by the minute.“What the fuck did you do?”“The bank just froze the guarantee. Joye, answer me.”“You think this is funny? Do you have any idea how much money is riding on this?”“Pick up the goddamn phone.”I took a slow sip of juice and let the phone vibrate itself into silence on the cushion beside me, my lips curling into a wicked smile.If only he knew that this was just the beginning.With a satisfied sigh, I reached forward for my new encrypted phone and opened a fresh message thread.“Good morning, Mr. Vance. This is Joye Bodley. I would like to request a private meeting today if your schedule allows. It’s regarding a business opportunity that may interest y
Chapter 6 JoyeA night had passed since I noticed the tattoo on Xavier’s arm, and I still hadn’t slept properly. I paced the length of my room, my bare feet almost silent against the clod floor of my bedroom, replaying every second of that brief conversation with Xavier like a tape. My mind still refused to leave the tattoo I had seen on his arm, that very tattoo I could swear I had seen on gbe stranger I had the one night stand with.I had asked him about the mark the moment I saw it. My voice had shaken more than I wanted it to.For a second something unreadable flickered across his face, then he looked away.“Milan,” he said, the word coming out flat. “I got it many years ago. Why do you want to know?”There was a slight edge to the question, like he already regretted answering.I lied without thinking. “My ex had a similar one. It just… looked familiar.”Xavier’s jaw tightened. He didn’t turn fully toward me. “I’m not your ex.” The words were quiet, almost bored, but the finalit
Chapter 5 JoyeThe second the doctor left the room, I grabbed Xavier's sleeve, panic clawing up my throat."Who else knows?" I asked. "Please tell me it's just us."He hesitated, and that hesitation told me everything before he even opened his mouth."Your parents were called when you collapsed. Mine too. They're on their way here now.""No, no, no." I pressed both hands over my face. "Xavier, they can't know. Not like this.""Joye…""Please." I grabbed his hand this time, desperate. "Please don't tell them. I'll do anything. I'll figure this out, I promise, just…not like this, not with them walking in and hearing it from a doctor like it's some kind of headline."He studied me for a long moment, something unreadable moving behind his eyes."This baby isn't mine," he said quietly. It wasn't a question.We both knew that for a fact. My stomach dropped. I opened my mouth, but no excuse came out, because what was there to say?"It's not," I admitted, my voice barely above a whisper. "I
Chapter 4 JoyeI woke up on a couch in an unfamiliar living room, a blanket draped over me that I didn't remember pulling on myself. My head throbbed. My mouth tasted like the champagne toast I never got to drink."You're awake."I sat up too fast, and the room tilted. Xavier stood by the window, jacket already off, sleeves rolled to his elbows, watching me with the same unreadable expression he'd worn through the entire ceremony.Again, those eyes. Strangely, they somehow brought memory of the steamy night I had with that stranger at the club. But that was impossible, right?I shook the thought off instantly."What happened?" I asked, clearing my throat."You fainted. The doctor at the courthouse said it was probably stress and low blood sugar. He said to let you rest and get you checked properly if it happens again."He was watching me now, that sense of family still resting in his gaze."Oh." I pressed a hand to my temple. "Where am I?""My house." He said it like it should have
Chapter 3 Joye"Absolutely not," I said, crossing my arms.My mother sighed, the same tired sigh she'd been giving me all week since the video of my canceled wedding had made its rounds online. "Joye, please. Just meet him. That's all we're asking.""I just left the altar two weeks ago, Mom. I'm not exactly in the mood to jump into another engagement."My father set down his newspaper, his voice firm the way it always was when his mind was already made up. "This isn't about mood, this is about damage control. Do you know what people are saying about this family right now?""I know exactly what they're saying, Dad. I was there when I said it.""Then you understand why this matters." He leaned forward. "The Andersons are one of the most respected families in the city. If you marry their son, it shows everyone that you've moved on, that you're thriving, that Stephen's little scandal didn't break you.""And if I don't want to marry a stranger just to save face?""Then the whispers contin
Chapter 2 Joye"Play it," I said to the media head standing by the screen.He hesitated, glancing at my father, who gave a small, confused nod. Then the screen behind the altar flickered to life.The first thing displayed on the screen was photos, photos of Stephen and Marcus at a hotel bar holding hands too intimately in a way that suggested more than friendship. Then a video, dated only three weeks ago, of the two of them laughing together in bed, Stephen's face turned toward the camera, unaware, completely at peace in a way I'd never once seen him with me.Gasps rippled through the congregation like wind through grass. Someone's chair scraped back, a woman near the front pressed a hand to her mouth.I reached out and took the microphone from the stunned pastor."Good afternoon, everyone," I said, my voice steadier than I felt. "Thank you all for coming today to celebrate what was supposed to be my wedding."Murmurs and whispers filled the hall. My mother's face, pale as the table







