Way Down We Go

Chapter Twenty Eight

"You did what?!" I cried out into my laptop screen. From inside the rectangle, Stephane Narciesse lowered his head and sighed loudly. He ran his hands down his face roughly, before looking up at me.

"Yeah, I did."

"Why? Her, of all people? Why her, Stephane? Couldn't it've been anybody else? She may try and use this against us to hault the divorce proceedings, you know the Valois side are doing everything they can to prevent it!"

"Hey, you've been sleeping with other guys since you and Francis broke up. Practice what you preach, Marie." he hissed, ever the defensive little snake when he got called out. I rolled my eyes.

"Yes, I have. I'm not ashamed. But I slept with men he didn't know and had no contact with. You, on the other hand, slept with my mother in law!" I cried out, swallowing down the bile in my throat. It was no secret that Catherine and Henry were not only in an open relationship but a basically over one, and that was obvious ever since I stayed with them as a child. But even with this fact, Catherine and Stephane was just disturbing. 

"Are you grossed out that I slept with her, or the fact that I didn't sleep with you?" he grinned. If he were near me, I would've slapped him.

"What the fuck?!" I snapped. "If you remember correctly, Mr. Narciesse, you tried it on with me when you were drunk the afternoon we found out that my husband was the father to our stepchildren." I rolled my eyes. "And I turned you down then. You're old enough to be my father, man. Lola's, too." I shuddered. It was true. Stephane's age was one of the factors in our weariness to Lola's marriage the summer after mine.

"Don't speak of her." he growed. I rolled my eyes.

"Don't allude to me sleeping with you." I shot back.

"Fair point."

"So, why did you Face Time me to tell me this?"

"I want you to make sure it won't effect the divorce proceedings."

"I'm not sure I can, Lola can claim-" I tried to think of the word, but my hungover brain which was still exhausted over the whole Aylee situation came up with naught. "something or other. Either way, I'll try and get a defence up, but it won't be easy." Although our business arrangement was the major block in the divorce proceedings, the Valois bringing up skeletons and dirty laundry combined with Francis fighting it did not help. He was right, we couldn't trust them not to use this against us.

"Our lawyers are smart, just trying to cover every base. I want away from that whore and imagine you do, too."

I nodded.

"I do, more than anything." I nodded.

"Make it happen, I gotta go. I'll give you what I have at around four, that good?"

"We've got an appointment with my legal team at seven, you'll be here for that?"

"Yeah, I'll get the jet. You'll have a car ready for me, like we agreed?"

"Yeah, Brie'll pick you up and drive you over."

"M'kay." he answered. "See you, girl."

"Bye." I waved once, clicking off. I sighed, leaning back into my chair, before my assistant came into my bedroom apartments, holding a coffee in one hand and a dressbag in another.

"Hey!" Brie sounded exhausted.

"Hey, you." I smiled, getting up to take the coffee -a soy latte with almond syrup and vanilla- from her as she lay the bag on the bed. "Wa'cha got there?" I asked, sipping my drink.

"Your dress for the VMAs," she smiled. "Wanna see?"

"Preformance or red carpet?" I asked her.

"Red carpet." she answered, unzipping the gown from it's bag, letting me see. "Woah." I said, as she pulled it up into the light.