CHAPTER 163: SWEET LIES AND SHARPER KNIVES
So right there and then, Belle told him everything—from James up to this very point, twisting as many facts as she could manage. She painted James and Diana as the villains of the family, demons who had come to destroy their peace and steal their happiness.
John smiled inwardly, shaking his head at her blatant lies, but kept his face calm and unreadable. Belle held her breath, expecting him to call her out, perhaps even accuse her of exaggerating. But to her surprise, he didn't. Instead, he turned to her with the sweetest smile on his face.
"Thanks for telling me, babe."
Belle breathed a sigh of relief and returned his smile.
"Well… can we leave now?" she asked, her tone lighter.
"Oh, sure we can. Where are we headed?"
"De Burillo's," she said proudly. It was a seven-star restaurant near Kensington Palace, the perfect spot to show off her man.
"Okay, ma'am. Strap up," John said playfully, his voice smooth.
As they drove out of the compound, John took a glance at her before focusing back on the road.
"But next time, make sure you introduce me no matter who's in the room."
"Okay, baby. I will," Belle responded sweetly.
"Well," John added, voice dropping slightly as if pitching a deal, "I could help you with your problems…"
"How?" Belle asked, the shame of her earlier exaggerations fading fast from her mind. Her focus was now fully on showing off to Cassandra. She believed she had John wrapped around her little finger, or so she thought.
She couldn't have been more naive.
"What if I help you deal with Diana and James?" John said calmly.
"Really?" Belle perked up. "You can do that?"
"What do you know about Diana's schedule at the moment?" he asked, glancing her way.
"Well… Toby Champion's party that's happening this week, it's been the talk of the town. She's the one planning it. That's all I know for now."
John nodded thoughtfully.
"How about we sabotage the party?"
Belle's eyes widened.
"You won't have to get your hands dirty," he added. "Just pitch the idea to your mom. Let her handle the dirty work."
"Oh baby, you're so smart," Belle drawled, giddy with excitement. "I think she'll totally go for it, especially now that Cassandra hasn't come up with any solid plans or fulfilled her promises."
The second the words left her mouth, she realized her mistake and quickly shut up.
John cast a slow side glance at her before turning his focus back to the road.
"Babe," he asked calmly, "what's going on? Who is Cassandra?"
Belle's heart jumped.
"Don't worry about it," she said quickly. "It's really nothing."
But John wasn't buying it.
"I'm happy to turn this car around if you can't tell me who she is or what plans have already been made," he said, his voice still calm but firm. "I mean, you've already started opening up to me about other things. What difference does one more make?"
He paused, then added quietly, "Besides, I'm the one now planning to sabotage your so-called Diana. Even when I don't know her. Just because I love you."
Belle stilled. His words made sense—too much sense. Then, almost as if something more important had struck her…
"You mean… you really love me?" she asked softly.
John ground his teeth lightly before responding.
"Of course I love you very much," he said. "I know it might be hard to believe, seeing as we just met barely a week ago. But trust me, when a man knows, he knows."
Belle beamed like the sun was rising inside her.
"I trust you, baby," she said sweetly. "And I believe you."
Right then and there, she told him everything. Every name, every plan, every secret.
She didn't hold a single thing back.
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When they got to the restaurant, a sharply dressed waiter led them to a luxurious private room after Belle identified herself. Cassandra was already there, waiting elegantly, sipping her drink like she owned the place.
"Ooh, honey, you didn't tell me we were having a visitor?" John commented dryly, his tone carrying just the right hint of sarcasm.
"Oh love, I'm so sorry," Belle drawled, her smile sugary-sweet. "Last minute change of plans, babe." She turned toward her friend. "Cassandra Movich, my best friend. Cassandra, meet my man, John Walker."
"You mean your new rag?" Cassandra replied bitterly, smirking as she flicked her hair over her shoulder. "At least he looks fresher than the other rags you've used."
She rolled her eyes as she took another sip of her wine.
John clenched his fist under the table, holding his calm. Belle's face flushed through a range of colors before finally landing on deep, stormy black. This was so not the reaction she had imagined. She expected envy. Fire. Even tears. But Cassandra? She sat there smug and unfazed, like Belle's new man was yesterday's news.
Or maybe she's pretending, Belle thought. Still, she decided to keep her cool.
She turned to John with a polished smile. "I'm really sorry for the gutter behavior, babe. Menopause tends to pull a woman's strings."
"Bitch, I'm just thirty," Cassandra said beneath her breath.
"Well, you could be fifty for all we know," Belle fired back, her tone cutting.
When it seemed like the room couldn't possibly contain both their egos, John stepped in like the gentleman he pretended to be.
"Uh, babe? Why don't we all sit down first," he said, his voice calm but firm.
They all took their seats, Belle, smugly; Cassandra, amused; John, calculating.
John glanced at Cassandra. She had judged him the second she laid eyes on him, and he knew gaining her trust wouldn't be easy. But he needed her. He needed to pull her to his side, dig into her mind, and use her to break the Higgins stronghold from the inside. It would be a challenge but John liked challenges.
As the conversation continued, he carefully played his cards. He gave both women equal attention, nodding, laughing, gently teasing, keeping the peace. And while Belle smiled through gritted teeth, seething that Cassandra wasn't the least bit jealous, John kept feeding the dynamic just enough to study it.
So this is the friend, he thought. The bitter one. The one with James still on her mind.
Belle noticed his act, and it didn't sit well with her. This wasn't how she'd planned the evening. She wanted to shine, to flaunt John like a diamond. She wanted Cassandra to feel inferior. But no—Cassandra was still untouchable. Because Cassandra had tasted James and what it felt like to have him as a man, John couldn't come close to him and Belle couldn't compete with that.
Not yet anyway.
Right there, as Cassandra laughed at something John said, Belle's mind started spinning with a dangerous idea. If she could just get James too—just once—then the power would shift. The score would settle.
And from that moment… her secret plan began to form.