Series: Webs We Weave Series by Krista Ritchie
Total pages in book: 167
Estimated words: 162520 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 813(@200wpm)___ 650(@250wpm)___ 542(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 162520 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 813(@200wpm)___ 650(@250wpm)___ 542(@300wpm)
“Jake…?”
“And Phoebe.” She gives me a puzzled look. “You’re sure you’re fine, Hailey?” She waves a server over, just to ask them to adjust the umbrella. Shade bathes me once more, and I thank them before they leave. “Better?” she wonders.
I nod. “I think it was a good, amicable breakup. There was no screaming match. No slap to the face. She didn’t push him in the pool, and he didn’t stomp angrily away. Phoebe should come out unscathed.”
The two of them stopped attending social functions together. People asked questions, and they’ve told the same story. Jake is mourning over his mom’s unexpected death two weeks ago, and now he’s too busy dealing with the messiness of his inheritance to give time to a relationship.
They’re officially over.
My mom sets her wineglass on the table, a whisper of a smile lifting her lips. “It was a clever breakup. Using Claudia Waterford’s death as the impetus. It painted them both in a good light. Was that you?”
She’s asking if it was my plan.
I nod again. “They asked for my help.”
“As they should. You’re brilliant.” She says it as if it still exists within me. My smarts. As if they haven’t been lost with my mind.
A familiar surge of pride pours through me. I used to bottle up her compliments like medicine, downing them during low times to give me boosts. These days it’s harder to hoard them. So I let the compliment flow through me and away like a single shot of dopamine.
She stares off at the patio railing for a beat, then takes a longer sip of wine. “If the Koning job is still on…” She pauses, hesitating to continue or not.
“It is still in motion. We haven’t called it quits.” Once Jake has full control of his dynasty, he’s agreed to give us each a million dollars for helping him. It’s a long con that was severely flubbed when my little brother offed Claudia.
Jake doesn’t deserve to be abandoned halfway through, especially after our mistake cost him his mother, and the payout will be a windfall we all desperately need.
“Then what’s the point of Phoebe breaking up with Jake?” she questions.
“Because she loves Rocky.”
“She can love Rocky and still fake date Jake.” Her advice is to do by example—since she’s been with my dad in the real sense while they’ve pretended to be with other people for cons—but we aren’t trying to follow in their exact footsteps.
Clearly this hasn’t sunk in for her yet.
“She’d rather be with Rocky publicly.”
Mom shakes her head slowly, her fingernails tapping the teak table. “The better play is for Phoebe to remain with the thirdborn heir to a billion-dollar fortune, especially while he’s fighting with his brother for the inheritance.”
I can’t disagree. It is the smarter move. But I’m still warring with how to protect the people I love versus protecting the job. “Phoebe and Jake’s breakup won’t impact the job that much,” I defend.
I’ve weighed the cost, and I’d rather my best friend be blissfully happy with my older brother than be tortured with the idea that they can never be publicly together.
“You know what would be easiest.” Her eyes bore into mine. There is no question. Because I’m conditioned to see the seamless path to secure a fortune. The one she taught me to locate.
“She’s not marrying Jake,” I say more strongly.
“Would he agree to it?”
I shove back from the table, feeling sick.
“Hailey, it’s just a question,” she says quickly. “I’m not pushing. I’m just…trying to gather data.” Her breathing shortens. She’s nervous? I’ve never had this much power over her, I don’t think. She’s never been this afraid to truly lose me.
“It doesn’t matter if he would or wouldn’t marry Phoebe.” I’m not giving her all the information. She’s not using me as a resource into the mind of Jake Waterford, and I hate the implication that Phoebe can be persuaded to do anything. That the only roadblock would be convincing Jake. “Phoebe wants to be romantically and truthfully with Rocky. What Phoebe—my best friend wants—is all that matters.”
Phoebe has never been selfish. She’s never wanted anything for herself at the cost of the team, and the fact that she wants my brother publicly is big.
“Okay. Okay.” She places her hands on the table to calm the strain between us. “You are aware, though, that marriage between Phoebe and Jake would guarantee more than a million—”
“I’m aware,” I cut her off.
I can’t lie to myself. I know a marriage is what I would suggest if feelings weren’t in the way. And maybe not just Phoebe and Rocky’s feelings…maybe mine, too.
She releases a soft sigh, uncertainty flashing in her tightened eyes. She wants me and her to be okay, but she can’t help but dole out nuggets of advice. I prepare for another. Unsurprised when she says, “Your life here is dependent on the outcome of that job.” She means my financial stability. “Unless you’d like to pull one in another city. You can always leave Victoria—”