Chapter 4

My mind was all over the place.

30 billion dollars. The Britton Group. The sole heir. Those words went off in my head like grenades.

Every time my dad called, he'd say, "Spend less. Money's hard to earn."

On my birthday, he'd send me 600 dollars and say, "Dad's busy. I'll make it up to you with a real gift some other time."

When I was saving for a down payment on a house, he'd say, "Save your money. Once you have your own place, you'll feel more confident."

I always thought he was just running a small business, hustling in import-export, making ends meet the hard way.

That changed now.

"Susan." Shawn's voice snapped me out of it. "Don't think about it right now. I'll explain everything to you soon.

He pointed at Mateo. "What matters most right now was if you want him to pay the price?"

I looked at Mateo.

His face had gone from pale to livid.

"Shawn, stop making stuff up," Mateo snapped. "When I started dating Susan, I had no idea who her dad was. You're slandering me!"

Shawn smiled. "Is that so?" he said.

He pulled out his phone, tapped a few times, and a recording started playing.

Mateo's voice came. "Buddy, listen up. I found out Susan's dad is actually part of the Britton Group."

"You sure?" another voice spoke.

Mateo sounded certain. "Absolutely. I got a buddy at the business bureau to check it out for me. Turns out, Anton Fritz's real name is Anton Britton. He's a legit secret billionaire."

The other voice said, "So Susan is sitting on billions?"

Mateo replied, "For sure! Do you think I should start being nice to her now?"

The other person snickered, "Nice? Man, you gotta lock her down. Once you do, you'll be set for life."

Mateo said, "You're right. I'm going for it right now."

The recording cut off abruptly.

The whole room went dead silent.

Mateo looked absolutely mortified, like he'd been hit by a truck.

"W-When was this?" he stammered.

"Three years ago," Shawn replied.

Shawn put his phone away.

"It was the third day you started chasing after Susan," he said. "Did you forget I was right next door when you called your cousin?"

Mateo's lips trembled, but he couldn't get a word out.

I sank back into my memories at the revelation.

How did I first meet Mateo three years ago?

It was at a friend's birthday party. He came up to me, added me on WhatsApp, and told me he liked my smile.

I'd had a few drinks that night, and he walked me home, waiting downstairs until he saw me go inside.

The next day, he messaged me, saying, [I couldn't sleep last night. I kept thinking about you.]

I thought that was so romantic at the time.

But it seemed all that romance was just him scheming behind my back.

"Susan." Velma's voice suddenly broke the silence.

Her eyes were red, and she looked at me all teary and pitiful.

She said, "Don't listen to Shawn. Mateo really does like you. He's told me so many times. He says you're sweet, pure, and honestly the best girl he's ever met.

"He just got confused and ended up with me for a bit..."

"Velma," I interrupted her. "Do you know what makes me sick the most?"

She froze for a second.

"It's not about Mateo cheating on me," I said. "It's not about him wanting my money. It's you."

I made sure she heard what I said.

I added, "We shared a dorm for four years in college. How many assignments did I do for you? How many times did I cover for you when you skipped class? How many guys did I help you chase?

"After graduation, when you couldn't find a job, I was the one who helped you get into my company.

"When you couldn't pay your rent, I was the one who lent you the money.

"I lent you 10 thousand dollars, and you never paid me back. And I never once asked you for it."

Velma's face fell.

"S-Susan, I didn't mean to not pay you back. I really don't have the money," Velma stammered.

"No money?" I let out a cold laugh. "That bag you're carrying is last year's release. It cost you about 4 grand."

"Those earrings? Tiffany, two grand.

"And your shoes? Limited edition. 2500.

"Add it all up, that's nearly ten grand, right?

"You say you're broke, but you've got money for all this stuff?"

Velma's lips trembled, but she couldn't get a word out.

"And there's more." I took a step closer. "You're three months pregnant, and your belly's already this big. How'd you get yourself to the hospital yesterday?

"Didn't you say you had a fever?

"You're pregnant and have a fever, but you went to a regular clinic instead of seeing an OB-GYN?"

Velma's expression froze instantly.

"I... I..." she stammered.

"You didn't go to the hospital yesterday," I said. I stared right into her eyes, not backing down.

"You deliberately said you're not coming, right?" I said. "You were afraid that if you stood next to the bride, everyone would see your belly.

"This is exactly what you wanted, to steal my groom away in front of everyone."

Tears streamed down Velma's face.

"Susan, you're misunderstanding me. I swear I didn't do it on purpose," Velma choked out. "I really wasn't feeling well. You have to believe me."

"Believe you?" I scoffed, letting out a cold laugh. "Eight years I believed in you, and this is what I get? You end up in bed with my boyfriend?"

The whole place blew up again.

Eight years as best friends, and Velma cheated with my boyfriend.

This was even messier than the drama earlier.