Billionaire, Let's Divorce! by BELLA

DENNIS

I slammed my fist on Cole's desk, causing everything on top to rattle.

"What the hell do you mean you can't find him?"

"Did I hear you well or have I suddenly developed an ear problem?"

Cole shrank back. His eyes were wide with fear and remorse.

"I'm sorry man, I've tried everything. James just...disappeared without a trace after taking all our investments."

Rage boiled inside me. I grabbed Cole by the lapels and shoved him against the wall.

"You're supposed to be the expert! You vouched for this guy!"

"I know, I know," Cole sputtered, hands up defensively.

"Believe me, I'm just as gutted as you are. I lost every penny too!"

I sneered.

"Yeah? Well it's a lot easier for you to be casual about losing pocket change. I put in $100,000 man! Do you have any idea how much I sacrificed for that?"

The memories flooded back, of all the rights I had to part with to raise that money. I thought that if the investment paid off, I could buy a whole new collection and more. Now all I had to show for it was NOTHING. Letting go of Cole, I ran shaky hands through my hair. I started pacing, mind racing over how I could possibly make this right. The bars were doing well, but not well enough to absorb that steep a loss quickly. "I'm ruined..." I muttered, then whirled on Cole again.

"This is on you! You talked me into this scheme with your big dreams about life-changing profits!"

Cole flinched at my booming voice.

"I didn't know he was going to run a damn Ponzi scheme! The backgrounds, documentation, it all checked out!"

I grabbed a glass paperweight from the desk and hurled it across the room. It shattered against the

secretary stuck her head in, alarmed. "Everything

roared, causing the woman to shrink back in terror

as I fought

still a way to track

could only shake his head

nothing, man. He covered

I flipped the desk with an animalistic

grabbed a crystal decanter from the liquor cart and heaved it against the wall, shattering it into

stormed out and slammed

the frame nearly splintered. I

the parking lot

my face. When

until my knuckles turned white. I exploded with a strangled cry of anguish,

"Stupid...fucking...idiot!"

with another bone-jarring strike

to be

away any hope of

slumped forward

forehead on the

around me. I sold off two

nearly every asset to raise

spat at my own reflection

just had to chance it all for more. For what? To get played like a goddamn

an instant because of my greed and one man's deception. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying in vain to somehow make this waking nightmare go away. But the throbbing ache in my hands

had gambled everything...and

drew a shaky breath and tried to compose myself enough to drive home. I fumbled the key into the ignition, twisting it hard with a

didn't turn. It was stuck fast, defying my increasingly frantic

growled as I wrenched the