Chapter 4

When I arrived at the bar, it was already 1:00 am. Everyone was at the door to welcome me.

My best friend, Samara Sheridan, rushed over and hugged me tightly. "Bebe, we've heard all about it. Zachary is such a bastard! How dare he do that to you?"

"I've already told my dad. The Jackson family is pulling out too. We'll teach him a good lesson for messing with our darling Phoebe!"

"The Leigh family is pulling out too."

"So is the Urwin family."

My friends all chimed in to show support for me.

My eyes turned slightly red as a year's worth of pent-up grievances poured forth like a broken dam. These people had watched me risk my life for Zachary. That was why when they learned the truth, they were even more indignant than I was.

I hastily wiped away my tears and entered the venue with hugs from everyone. "No more crying! Tonight is my singles party. We should all enjoy ourselves!"

Inside the bar, glasses clinked as bodies swayed to the music on the dance floor.

Suddenly, a group of men kicked the door open. Zachary's friends stormed in.

"You sure seem to be having a great time, Phoebe," one of them jeered. He looked at me scornfully with his hands on his hips as he said arrogantly, "You won't get to enjoy yourself much longer. Zachary is on his way."

Instead of getting angry at him, I laughed out loud. "Zachary? Isn't he dead?"

My friends snickered too. "Yeah. Isn't he six feet under now?"

They wanted to say more, but I deliberately sighed like I had put the past behind me.

I said serenely, "The dead can't come back to life. I've already moved on. I hope you all can move on too. Why don't you join us? Maybe it'll help heal the psychological trauma."

I turned around and wrapped my arms around my friends. We headed back to the dance floor to party wildly.

Behind me, a woman's furious scream rang out. "Cut your act, Phoebe! You saw Zachary, didn't you?"

Lola stood at the door, glaring at me hatefully. There was a bandage on her forehead. It seemed the impact from the crash earlier was quite strong.

"And to think that you even pulled out the investment! How could you do this to the Gray family when they're in such a difficult position?" Lola screeched.

The moment she said that, I understood that these people had come to demand the funds that I had cut off.

Looking past them, I saw a familiar figure. In the shadowy hallway, Zachary was leaning against the wall with the bill of his cap pulled low, revealing only half of his face. So, he had been here all along. Yet, he didn't dare to come forward and appear before me.

I looked down at Lola condescendingly. "So what if I pulled out? What does it have to do with you? Who are you to yell at me here?"

Lola's face flushed red upon being reprimanded. She pointed a trembling finger at me and shrieked, "Of course, it concerns me! If Zach finds out what you did, he'll be so heartbroken. And if he's heartbroken, I'd be heartbroken for him too!"

I sneered, "Drop the act. You're just worried that you won't get that money when you become the future Mrs. Gray."

At those words, my friends shot probing gazes at Lola.

She shook with rage. "You're spouting nonsense! There's… There's nothing going on between me and Zach. I'm just worried about him."

I raised my glass and shook my head helplessly. "What's the point of worrying for a dead man?"

I swirled the wine in my glass and downed it in one gulp.

Turning my head, I snaked an arm around a handsome man's neck and lifted his chin with my finger flirtatiously. "Let's go, handsome. Let's get back to having fun."

Just as I turned around, Zachary, who had been leaning against the wall in silence, finally couldn't hold back anymore. He rushed over and forcefully yanked my hand away from the man. His words were cutting and fierce as he exclaimed, "I'm not dead yet, Phoebe!"