Chapter 11: Do Me a Favor

A man like Julian Shepherd? I wouldn't take him back if he begged on his knees. Monica stood in front of me, smug as hell. "Honestly, Serena Cole, this is just pathetic. It's obvious you're jealous. I mean, what kind of man would ever go for someone like you?" Naomi snorted. "You mean, besides the idiot who dumped her for a trashy snake like you? There are plenty of men who'd go crazy for Serena. Only a guy with mashed potatoes for brains would trade her for… this." Naomi looked her up and down with zero effort to hide the disgust. Monica's eyes narrowed. "Really? You got a guy? Fine. Call him out. Let's see what kind of desperate loser would go for Serena Cole." That stung more than I wanted to admit. Back when we were still friends, I used to tell Monica everything about Julian. I thought we were close. I thought she cared. Every time she asked about him, I just thought she was being supportive. I was so stupid. She never cared about me. She was gathering intel to use against me. All this time, she wanted him for herself. Now, she was here, gloating. Like she'd won some prize. When I didn't respond, she sneered again. "Can't even make the call? Guess nobody wants you after all." I turned to walk away. I wasn't going to sink to her level. But Monica stepped in front of me, blocking my path. She wasn't finished. "Monica Belmont, you already got what you wanted," I snapped, my patience long gone. "You should be real proud of yourself. So why are you still so obsessed with tearing me down?" She opened her mouth to answer, but before she could say a word, something caught my eye in the distance. Arthur Sandlin. Just standing there near the escalator, his hands in his pockets, looking like he owned the whole damn place. A slow smile curled across my lips. "You want to meet my man? Sure. I'll show you." I turned away from Monica and walked straight toward Arthur. I had no clue what he was doing here. Maybe fate had a weird sense of humor. Either way, I wasn't about to waste the opportunity. "Darling," I said sweetly, sliding my arm through his, "what a surprise. Were you looking for me?" Arthur stared at me like I'd grown two heads. His jaw clenched. He was clearly not amused. "You?" he said under his breath. "What are you doing?" "Please," I whispered, smiling wide for the crowd behind me. "Just do me this one favor. For the sake of… you know. That night." Arthur's expression tightened. I couldn't tell what was going through his head, but those eyes… they weren't warm. If anything, they were calculating. And he felt dangerous. Really dangerous.