Chapter Thirty-Nine

It feels as if a thousand daggers have pierced my skin there isn’t a single pair of eyes in this room that are not fixated on me.

Alex grips my hands and pulls me off to the side as the door opens behind me, letting in more people from the cold.

“Gen are you okay, you’ve gone pale”.

He fumbles over me like I am some precious little gem, touching my face and gripping my hand.

“I’m fine”


Pulling my hand away from him I scan the room making sure no one has seen us.

“Alex would you mind getting us a drink, I could use something strong”.

He hesitates and reluctantly agrees, turning his head a few times to make sure I’m not going anywhere.

“I’ll be fine, I’m not going to move I promise “


With that, he finally disappears into the crowd. I scan the room looking for Greyson. It’s obvious he is here, and that Brittany is making it well known she arrived with him from the sad lopsided head tilts some of the women in the room keep giving me.

I spot him across the room and our eyes meet for a second then Brittany comes into view. She has on the shortest dress I’ve ever seen her fake bump-out on display as she holds her hand over it in a protective manner.

Laughing at whatever the person opposite her said and forcing Greyson’s eyes to break away from my own and re-join the conversation.

“I got you a prosecco I hope that’s alright?”

“That’s great thank you”.

I take the glass and gulp it all down in one.

“Woah. Here have this one too I can get another “

I smile lightly and take the glass still staring in Greyson’s direction.

“Thanks, Alex”

“He’s not worth it Gen, I did try to warn you”


I was waiting for him to start this, then become the caring best friend once more, to reassure me that everything is going to be fine.

“You know when this is all over, and your divorce is settled have you thought about where you will go?”

It is hard to have this conversation with him, I know that he is going to ask me to move back in. I cannot even tell him that I have plenty of money after all the premise of mine and Greyson’s marriage was built on his need for a wife and my need for money.

Thankfully, it blossomed into something more than that, I’ve spent very little of what he gave me and when this is all over, I plan on giving him every penny back.

“I’m going to go and stay with a friend”.

Alex’s eyes widened in shock.

“What friend ?”


“Luca. You know him we went to his diner”.

“You’re going to stay with that guy?”

He’s visibly angry and I’m suddenly regretting my decision of saying I’m going to live with another man, knowing what I know now of Alex I think on my feet.

“Well not him per se but his Nona, she had an accident recently and needs some help around her house and with the diner. It’s a win-win I get somewhere to live and to work”


His face softens a bit, but I’ve broken whatever plan he had in his mind, there is still a glint of anger behind his eyes.

“Well, you could come and live with me, I won’t charge you anything”


“I don’t think that’s such a good idea, Alex, I mean you might get a girlfriend one day and like your last, I doubt they will enjoy living with me as much as you do. Besides, I have to put my big girl pants on some time and start fending for myself”.

“Well, the offer is there. Now how about we leave from behind this pillar and go enjoy the party. We should show them just how unaffected you are by Greyson”.

“Okay sure”

I know what he’s saying is logical but it’s so bitter, I know he is only doing it because he wants me front and centre when they try to make a fool of Grey. He wants me near him so the arms I'll run into when my heart breaks, even more, are his.

We push through the crowd and back to the bar. While Alex orders another drink, I once again scan the room and then I look eyes with the one and only Max Maddox, he lifts his glass and tilts it towards me with a smirk on his face.

I wonder if he ever met Alex in person, I mean he has no idea that I know of the plan and if they had surely Max would have told him.

I take my drink from Alex and politely raise my glass to Max, showing him that I’m still part of his master plan. As soon as I do, he nods once more and then looks away resuming his conversation with his wife and those around him.

“How do you know him?”

The familiar feeling of dread washes over me as my brother steps in front of me.

“Mitch. What an unpleasant surprise.”


“I asked you a question”


He’s asking me through gritted teeth, staring directly at me.

“He is my Husband's brother. Or did you forget I am married”


He scoffs and then looks at Greyson who is talking to a familiar-looking older man who I can only assume his Greyson’s father, the two of them heading in the direction of Max.

“Well, your husband is here with someone else so I can only assume you fucked that up just like you do everything else. What was it this time?”

He rubs his hand under his chin and pretends to think, while my blood slowly begins to boil.

“Let me guess, you fucked his brother while he fucked the blond bimbo and now it’s over between you two. It’s so typical for you to open your legs for anyone you come across. Thank goodness I no longer have to deal with you”


I’m on the verge of tears, not because of what he said he has spoken to me this way for the longest time. I’m angry and I want nothing more than to scream in his face, to tell him just how worthless he really is and to shout my love for Greyson at the top of my lungs. I want to show Mitch just how wrong he is.

But I don’t. I can’t, it’s not part of the plan and I don’t want to ruin anything.

“Are you done?”


Mitch looks down at me, clearly shocked that I’m not crying but I have stood up to him a little.

“Of course not, but the night is still young Gen. You'll see me again, perhaps I’ll go say hello to your Husband and introduce myself to his soon to be the second wife”.

He swans off into the crowd in the direction of Greyson.

“What did you shit head brother want?”

Alex stares daggers into the back of Mitch’s head while he asks me.

“The normal. To make me feel small and useless “

“He is a dick you know; I hope he’s next “

“Next for what ?”


Alex fumbles right away realising what he has just said, realising that he now has to come up with a quick lie to throw me off the scent of his plan.

“Oh, you know, next to get what he deserves maybe he will lose your parents company or something”.

He laughs it off and takes a drink before I can ask him anything else.

The Night seems to pass by quickly Greyson, and I manage to catch glimpses of one another, each of us smiling hoping no one has seen.

As I made my way around the room with Alex, I was stopped by a few women. Some told me to stay strong because of Greyson’s a dick.

Others told me they knew it wouldn’t last but they are sorry anyway, but two women whom I recognise from the office pull me to one side and tell me how Greyson had treated both of them.

Sleeping with them and throwing them aside like trash, they are both lovely and offer me support, stating that for him to marry me was a harsh move and that I should keep my head up.

I’m oddly comforted by their words, if this situation were real then I think I could have been friends with the two of them. At the same time, though that’s three people in one night who have sought me out to tell me of their conquests with Greyson, I can’t help but let my mind wander as to how many others there are.

I’m pulled from my thoughts when the music stops, and Greyson’s father takes the stage. MY stomach dropped at the sight of him and the two brothers stood to the left of the stairs.

His father brings his speech thanking the company staff for their service this year, there are a few cheers and claps along with agreeable nodding.

He announces that all staff receive a few extra paid days off this year over Christmas to enjoy time with their loved ones.
I can’t help but stare at him, he seems like a really great guy and it makes me wonder how Max and Greyson have ended up the way they have.

I’m watching him make his announcements and thank everybody again. A slide show of some key moments from the company's year rolls across the screen. Alex nudges me and tells me he’s going to the toilet, but I assume he’s going to add his own images to the next section of this speech.

“I told you he would be mined Genevieve”.

Brittany stands beside me, facing forward and holding a glass of water, the sight of the two of us has caused a few heads to turn in our direction and mutter between one another.

“What exactly is it that you want Brittany”.

I say through gritted teeth still smiling at watching the stage.

“I wanted to put on a united front, I want people to know I’m not a heartless bitch and that the ex and I are friends”.

She places her glass on the tray as a waiter as he walks past, and I wish the ground would just swallow me up.

“I also wanted to be near you when it happens”.

“When what happens exactly ?”


Playing dumb for the second time tonight I wait for her response.

“When the whole room sees you for what you really are. I want to be here next to you glowing as you cower down in shame”.

“Whatever Brittany. I’m sure whatever you have planned I have been through worse”


She doesn’t like my response and turns her body towards me, her eyes widening as Alex comes back to stand on my other side.

“You know what, I don’t want to stand with trash after all”.

She glances once more at Alex and then heads back into the crowd to stand with Max's wife. As she does the room erupts into clapping and cheering, Mr Maddox now stepping back and passing the Microphone to Max.

My stomach once again drops, and I can feel my hand getting sweaty. He steps up to the front and scans the crowd. Its obvious people have mixed reviews on him, some are smiling and interested others look as though they wished they were elsewhere.

*As you All know my brother and I have been slowly taking over areas of the business, myself being more of a background than a face. I am incredibly grateful for all the work the teams have put in to make this year at Maddox INC one of our most successful*

He pauses and puts his hands together to clap the people in the room.

*With that being said there have been some challenging times, some new additions to the family and more recently a new addition on the way*

His eyes darted between Brittany and I and then back to Greyson, the crowd seemed to follow his gaze, knowing it was a direct dig.

*My own family is so important to me, my beautiful wife and children whom without I would be lost have made my own year a great one. I hope the extra days off will allow you to spend some time with your loved ones and truly cherish the moments with your children and family*

He is like one big contradicting asshole on that stage but everyone around him seems to be feeding into his fatherly persona. Some even awww-ing when he motioned to Lily.

Greyson then steps forward holding a second microphone, Mitch looks at him completely confused as to what he is going to say.

“That’s right Mitch, you really do have such a wonderful family and a wonderful life. I know this year Father asked you to put a little slide show together to let the company family have an insight into our lives and I just wanted to personally thank you for that”.

Mitch smiles, clearly thinking Greyson is a complete idiot. Greyson shakes his hand and carries on, their father beaming behind them.

“This year has thrown some curveballs my way, some of my past behaviours seem to have caught up with me. But I’m determined to make them right, and to be a good husband”.

Brittany lets out a gasp thinking he is talking about her, and people stare smiling as she looks up at him wide eyes rubbing her small baby bump. My brother is not far behind his eyes fixating on me with a sinister smirk on his face, as he lets me know he is enjoying my humiliation.

“Throughout this year we will be inviting members of the team to submit family pictures for a company slide show, showcasing why family matters. With all that being said why don’t we play our Mitch and get this started?”

Max takes a step towards the side of the stage, speaking to the guy on the floor flashes me a wink and then re-joins Greyson.

The lights dim as images of Max and his family begin to pop up onto the screen.