A nervous–looking nurse who kept ncing at the chrysanthemums led us to the VIP floor. As soon as we entered therge room, I realized that the “old man” that Alexander wanted to visit was Ben Wilde. He looked like he had seen better days. There was a white bandage wrapped around his head, a giant cast on his right leg, and purple and green bruises all over his face. The worst of the bruises were his swollen eyes that had turned purple.


    I couldn’t help the inappropriateugh that came out of my mouth. But I didn’t feel too bad after what Ben had done. He deserved being stuck in a hospital bed, broken and bruised.


    When he noticed us, Ben’s eyes narrowed. Then, his gaze fell to the funeral flowers in Alexander’s hands. “What the hell did you bring those for?” he demanded.


    Instead of leaving like I desperately wanted, Alexander led me further into the room.


    *Olivia*


    Alexander walked over to Ben’s bedside and carefully set down the flowers. “How are you feeling?”


    I stayed as far away from Ben as possible, inching over to the corner of the room. Crossing my arms, I squinted at Alexander, wondering why the hell we were here and what kind of game he was ying. In the back of my mind, I wondered if Alexander had paid someone to beat up Ben. Honestly, I hoped he did after what the other man had done to him.


    Ben seemed to have the same thought as me. He narrowed his eyes at


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    Alexander. “I’m not sure why you’re here, but I know it’s for nefarious purposes,” he said and eyed the chrysanthems warily. “Nobody brings those kinds of flowers to someone that they wish well upon.” He let out a long, slow breath. “I just want you to know that there is no bad blood between us, and I’d like to clear the air.”


    Alexander tilted his head in mock confusion. At this point, I could tell that Alexander was ying Ben, and I bit my lip so I wouldn’t smile. My boss approached Ben’s bedside like a lion hunting his prey.


    Vindication swirled through me when I saw Ben’s eyes widen with fear.


    Good.


    He should be scared. He had done a lot of bad things that he needed to beg for forgiveness for.


    “I just wanted to tell you how thankful I am for the gift that you gave mest time that we were together,” Alexander said, referring to the fact that Ben had drugged him. “So, I brought you these flowers, and they represent how much I hope for your speedy recovery.”


    Trantion: Alexander was hoping that Ben would end up in a coffin. Couldn’t say that I med him. The vindictive part of me hoping that Ben would end up six feet under, too.


    Ben’s face paled, and he looked around for help. But there weren’t any hospital staff in the room. They had all cleared out because of


    Alexander’s flowers. In the back of my mind, I wondered if that had


    been his intention.


    “Please, can you just leave,” Ben begged in a small voice. “I just want to heal.”


    “Oh, we’re going,” Alexander said and began to back away. “I just


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    wanted to stop in and see how you’re doing.”


    Trantion: Alexander wanted to ensure that Ben knew that this was far from over and that he could easily gain ess to him at all times.


    Alexander and I walked out of the room, but right after exiting the doorframe, Alexander turned back, and a wicked smile crossed his face. “Oh, by the way, our trip was well photographed.” His eyebrows raised. “Every aspect of our trip. And a few of your…extracurricr activities with a certain actress.”


    “No,” Ben uttered, and his hands gripped the white hospital nket.


    “Yes,” Alexander said with a smirk. He crossed his arms and stared the other man down. “But, don’t worry. The pictures are in my possession so that they won’t be printed in a gossip magazine for all of the country to see…espically your wife.”


    “What are you going to do with the pictures?” Ben asked, his voice shaking.


    Alexander shrugged like he couldn’t care less. “I’m not sure. I’m going to hold on to them for a while. Maybe they will end up in your wife’s email inbox, or maybe they will be sshed across the gossip magazines for everyone to see.” Alexander shrugged like he couldn’t care less either way. “Only time will tell.”