Chapter 164
Jocelyn stirred her iced coffee. The ice cubes clinked against the glass. “I feel like a fraud. Gaston did the heavy lifting. I just… survived.”
“He’s a shark,” Bella agreed, setting her phone down at last. She leaned in, eyes gleaming. “Look, J, I’ll be honest. My father read me the riot act after the Schneider news broke. He said, ‘The Schneiders are out, the Collinses are in. You will get back in Jocelyn Wolfe’s good graces, or I will cut your Amex in half.’ So here I am, officially on Team Jocelyn.” She winked. “But between us — that shark of yours likes swimming in other waters.”
Jocelyn stiffened. “Bella.”
“Oh, come on,” Bella said, waving a hand. “It’s the worst-kept secret in New York. Why else would a billionaire like that stay single until thirty-two? And that assistant? Vance?”
A cold weight settled in Jocelyn’s stomach. “Vance?”
𝗝𝘰in 𝗼ur 𝘤𝘰m𝗺𝗎ni𝘁𝗒 𝘰ո 𝗀𝘢𝗅𝘯оve𝗅𝘴.𝘤оm
“They are inseparable,” Bella nodded, biting into a pickle. “The ‘assistant’ title is such a classic cover. My stylist knows a guy who knows a guy who saw them at Fire Island last summer. Just saying.”
Jocelyn looked down at her plate. The logical part of her brain had always known this. She had seen the way Gaston looked at Vance — the trust, the silent shorthand between them. It made sense.
“I want to thank him,” she said quietly. “Properly. For saving the hotel. For everything.”
Bella chewed thoughtfully. “Get him something he can enjoy with his partner. Show him you’re the cool, supportive beard. He’ll love you for it.”
“What do gay men like?” Jocelyn asked, feeling genuinely clueless and slightly ridiculous.
“Courtside seats,” Bella declared without hesitation. “Knicks game. Madison Square Garden. Friday night is the big one against the Celtics.”
“Basketball?”
“High visibility, lots of celebrities,” Bella explained. “But dark enough for private conversation. It’s a total date-night flex. Get two seats. Row AA.”
Jocelyn pulled out her phone. She felt a strange mixture of resolve and hollow sadness. She wanted Gaston to be happy. If Vance was the one who made him happy, then she would support it. That was the arrangement.
She opened Ticketmaster. The resale prices made her eyes water.
Row AA. Seats 1 and 2.
Total: $10,000.
She hesitated for a fraction of a second, then pressed Purchase and set her phone face down on the table.
“Done,” she said.
“He’s going to be so happy to go with Vance,” she added, and forced a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
Thirty blocks uptown, in the silent glass-walled office of Collins Corp, Gaston sat behind his desk working through a stack of documents Vance had placed in front of him.
“Did you send the flowers?” Gaston asked, his pen still moving.
“Yes, sir. Red roses. As requested,” Vance replied from his post by the door.
“Good.” Gaston suppressed a smile. He could picture Jocelyn’s face — flushed, searching, trying to dissect his motive.
.