Chapter 10

JACQUELINE

"Vodka? I know you're sad, hon, but it's the middle of the day," I said, choosing my words carefully as I watched Chloe pick up the glass from the server and downed the alcohol in one gulp. "Or…you could just do that, yeah." I give up. Natalie sat across the table, scrolling seriously through her phone.

"I found the bastard's wife on social media," She finally looked up from her phone, sliding her iPhone across the table to me. I tried not to cringe as I scrolled through photos of Chloe's latest…well, boyfriend on social media. The same Tinder date she had been fawning over several days ago. In the photos his arms were wrapped around the waist of a pretty dark haired woman, two kids on either side of them. The bastard was married.

"What a fucking asshole!" I swore, scrolling through their vacation photos and videos on Instagram. He had two kids! Two of them. And in these photos they looked like a happily married couple. But the bastard was out here cheating. I zoomed in on a photo of the wife, marveling at her beauty. Caramel skin, plump beautiful lips, and full kinky hair. She also had an amazing body. "I can't even begin to imagine why he would cheat in the first place. His wife is a fucking goddess!"

Chloe paused from her crying to glare at me with red rimmed eyes. "That's not helpful!"

"Sorry, sorry…" I chuckled, placing the phone to the table to stop myself from staring too hard. "That dude is a fucking asshole and I'm glad you found out."

I was at work when I got the text. Chloe had texted an SOS to our groupchat an hour ago. That's how I knew something serious had happened. And I was sure it was a cheating boyfriend. Again. But what was there to expect? It was Tinder for crying out loud! I guess Chloe loved and romanticised the idea of an online relationship turned happy ending. But nevertheless, I would always be here to comfort her.

"Want me to track him down and fuck him up?" Natalie asked, still narrowing her eyes at his photos as though she were manifesting his demise. To our surprise, Chloe laughed, choking on her tears.

"No it's fine. I just wish I'd stop falling for this bullshit. Every damn time. I guess I really am a dumb blonde…" Her voice cracked as she burst into tears again. Natalie and I scooted closer to her, rubbing her shoulders affectionately.

"You're not dumb, hon," Nat cooed. "You're just meeting the wrong people that's all."

After a few minutes of comforting, she finally calmed down. I handed her some wipes which she gratefully accepted. After a few more shots of vodka, she had completely stopped crying.

"Also…maybe you should get off Tinder for a while," I said carefully, not wanting it to sound the wrong way. She needed a break from relationships, in my opinion. That would do her a lot of good.

She nodded. "You're right. You know what? I'm uninstalling the app right now," She said decidedly, picking up her phone and doing just that. Natalie and I cheered wildly.

"Here's to the single life, lots of sex, and zero commitments!" Natalie whooped. This girl would be the death of me.

Laughing, we raised the glasses to our lips, downing one shot. I didn't want to drink much because I still had to go see Dad at the hospital. We spent the next hour talking about everything we could think of. They cackled loudly when I told them about the whole thing with Rob and the people at work.

"You guys are the best friends ever," Chloe slurred when I told her I had to leave. We moved in for a group hug and I could see Chloe struggling to stay on her feet.

"Dude, you're drunk," I chuckled. I turned to Nat. "Please make sure she gets an Uber."

Bading my friends goodbye, I rushed out of the bar and headed to the hospital. As soon as I walked through the doors, all eyes turned to me, and this time I knew why. Some of the nurses stared mouth agape as I walked past them. When I got to where the receptionist stood, she waved to me.

"Hey! You're late today," She smiled.

I exhaled gratefully. At least she wasn't treating me any differently. In contrast to the others, her lips were spread in a wide smile.

"Yeah, I had a bit of an emergency. Is the doctor around today?" When she nodded, I thanked her profusely. As I was about to leave, I saw a copy of the same tabloid hidden between files on her desk. When she saw me glance down at it, she immediately grinned.

"Congratulations, by the way!"

I deflated immediately. I desperately wanted to tell her that I was in no way affiliated to one of the most famous person in the damn country. But no one would get it and so I didn't bother. "It's a long story," I said instead, shrugging.

I might as well have thanked her and showed her a diamond engagement ring because she surely acted like it, smiling and reaching out to squeeze my arm. "I hope I'm invited to the wedding," She winked discreetly.

I faked a smile, quickly walking away lest I die of embarrassment. I exhaled, wishing everyone would just leave me alone. Don't worry, Jacqueline, it'll die off soon, I assured myself, trying to relax before I went in to see Dad.

When I managed to put on a grin, I turned the knob and walked in. Dad was seated upright on the bed, the doctor bent over him. It was when I moved closer that I saw that Dad was actually asleep. I sighed, trying not to feel disappointed.

"Doctor Reece, hello," I greeted, turning to the doctor who was now peeling off his surgical gloves. He only grunted in response, making me feel awkward. "Um…how is my father doing?"

"Not good," He replied coldly. "But you already know that. And with your current status boost, it's a mystery that arrangements have not been made for his surgery already."

I grimaced, confused.

"You're all over the news. The billionaire's mistress. Or was it girlfriend? Whatever it was. At least now it should be hard to get the money for your father's treatment."

My hands clenched into fists by my side. It was obvious what he was implying. That I was a slut. And although he had stated this flatly, I could hear the venom in his voice. So much for professionalism. I wanted to bite back, but I knew it would do no good. The only thing that was important to me right now was my father's health.

Keeping my indifferent expression, I turned to him. "My father will get the surgery he needs as soon as I can afford it. Which will be soon. Just…please, do your best to keep him stable for now. I appreciate all you've been doing so far." Walking to the bedside table, I dropped the plastic bag which contained some fruits, and leaned down to give Dad a light kiss on his forehead.

"Later, Doc," I smiled tightly and walked out.