Page 44 of High Stakes

Dad: I met someone. She’s really nice, I think you’d like her.

He hasn’t shown an interest in any other woman since mum, but surely this is a good thing. He’s looking forward and not back. I want him to be happy.

Me: If she makes you happy, dad, I’ll like her x

I put my phone on silent and pick up my drawing pad, adding colour to my early designs. It helps to take my mind off everything Aiden related, and I soon feel myself getting tired. I lock my bedroom door and get into bed. After our fight, I’m sure he’ll leave me in here, but I’m not risking it.

Aiden

JP, me and Raff are all sitting in silence in my office. The weight of the night is heavy on my shoulders, and I have a feeling I’ve fucked it all up with Bella. I shouldn’t have gone in so hard, and I shouldn’t have let my feelingstake over.

JP props his feet up on the edge of my desk. “There are other clubs,” he says with a shrug.

Raff nods in agreement. “He’s right. It’s not worth all this stress.”

“Me and Jake worked too hard to get this place up and running. It means everything to me and it’s the last place I have that reminds me of him. I can still feel him here, I can hear his laughter and see him behind the bar shaking cocktails to impress the ladies.” I sigh, fighting the urge to cry. I haven’t broken down once since he left me, and I won’t start now. The entire game’s been one big distraction, maybe that was his plan all along to save me dropping into depression.

“Do you think she’s left?” asks JP.

I shrug, “Probably. I don’t blame her.”

“So where do we go from here?” asks Raff.

“If she’s gone, I’ll do what she wants. I’ll fake the whole relationship deal for the next couple of weeks. I only avoided that to lessen her pain in the end, but if that’s the only way to do it, I have no choice.”

“There’s another way,” says Raff, fidgeting.

I roll my eyes, “It’s not real,” I snap. “And it won’t ever be.”

“Why?” he asks simply.

“Because I like my life the way it is. Yes, she’s great and I love spending time with her. But eventually, I’d miss all this. And none of it is real, the entire thing started on a lie to get her to need me. Imagine if she found that out further down the line. No, it just wouldn’t work.”

“When we first came up with the plan, it didn’t feel this hard,” mutters JP. “She wasn’t real to us then. And now she’s here, it’s like she’s bewitched us all. She brings us damn cupcakes home every night,” he adds.

“Good cupcakes,” agrees Raff.

“She doesn’t deserve any of this,” adds JP.

“Don’t you think I know that?” I snap. “But Jake did this, and whatever reasons he had, I can’t back out and I can’t lose my club. We can’t lose it. We love this place.” I sigh heavily, “If my brother wasn’t dead, I’d kill him.” I look them in the eye, “It’s almost over and then we can go back to how it was before.”

It’s almost five in the morning when I decide I can’t hide any more. I head up to the apartment and open the bedroom door quietly. She isn’t there. My heart hammers hard in my chest as I march over to the wardrobe and fling openthe door. All her stuff has gone. I check my bathroom and it’s the same, empty.Fuck.

I go to her room, pushing the door, to find it locked. I frown. She’s never locked the door before, but at least she’s still here. I tap gently on it, “Bella?” There’s no answer so I try again, this time knocking louder. “Bella?”

“Go away, Aiden,” she mumbles.

“Let me in,” I mutter, resting my forehead against the door. “Please.”

“No.”

My heart sinks. I should just be pleased she’s still here, but I didn’t realise how dependent I’ve become having her beside me all night. “Don’t you want me to keep you warm?”

“Go to bed, Aiden. You made yourself perfectly clear. I’m done.”

I sigh, heading back to my room.

I hear giggling and it wakes me from my slumber. I groan, stretching out and opening one eye. It’s almost ten a.m. and I am not ready to get up. The giggling comes again, and I narrow my eyes, pushing myself to sit. I’m intrigued, so I grab my shorts and pull them on, thenfollow the sound of the giggles into the living room where Bella is dressed in sporty leggings and a cropped top. Behind her is a man dressed in sports gear, and he’s got his hands on her hips as she squats.