Hired a Gigolo, Got a Billionaire

Chapter 302 My apartment had never felt so small or so quiet when I walked through the door. I tossed my keys onto the kitchen counter harder than necessary, the sharp clatter echoing through the empty space in a way that only emphasized how alone I was. The Uber ride home had been torture. Every red light and every turn gave me more time to think, to relive the discovery, I walked over to the living room window and stared out at London stretching endlessly in front of me. The city lights blinked as they always did, completely indifferent to the emotional wreckage inside me.

People were going about their lives as if nothing had changed, while mine had been flipped upside down in a matter of minutes. I needed to talk to someone. But I knew Zoey well enough to know that if I called her in this state, my sister would be on the first transatlantic flight to check on me in person. The only other person I could call wouldn't be a friendly conversation, but it was better than keeping everything bottled up. The anger was building like a storm, and I knew exactly who I needed to confront.

There was one person who knew everything about Nate, about Wanderer, about all of it... and had left me completely in the dark. I grabbed my phone and called Gwen, my irritation growing with every unanswered ring. The video call connected after a few seconds, revealing Gwen's smiling face framed by a breathtaking Valentian landscape. She looked relaxed, hair loose in the breeze, wearing an elegant sweater that screamed vacation in Castoria. "Annie! What a great surprise!" she said brightly, adjusting the phone. "How was Christmas? Are you still with Nate?

cheer. "You knew and you lied to me." Gwen's smile vanished instantly, replaced by genuine confusion. I watched her brows knit together as she tried to process what I'd just said. "Annie, what are you talking about?" she asked carefully, her tone shifting to concern. "Wanderer!" I practically shouted. "You knew it was Nate the whole time!" I saw the realization slowly dawn on her face. Her expression tightened, and I caught the

like ink in water. "Nate told you?" she asked softly, apprehension heavy in her voice. "He told me? He told me?" I repeated, my voice jumping an octave. "No one told me anything! I had to figure it out on my own, like an idiot finally putting together a

not letting her explain. "I remember perfectly how you warned me about the dangers of talking to strangers online. About how I had no idea who he really was. And then suddenly, you just stopped warning me. I thought it was strange, but I figured maybe you'd accepted that I was grown enough to make my 1/3 own

explain-" "I thought we were friends!" I cut in again. "Real friends. The kind who don't keep massive secrets that directly affect the other person's life!" Gwen let out a deep sigh, running a hand over her face in a clear display of exhaustion and regret.

on, I wanted to give him the opportunity to do the right thing." "How convenient that now everyone says they were going to tell me," I shot back, bitterness dripping from every word. "Everyone had the best intentions. Everyone was planning to