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!"

paperweight from the desk and hurled it across the room. It

her head in, alarmed. "Everything okay, Mr.

woman to shrink back in terror

the desk as I fought for control. I lifted

track this bastard down and get our

only shake his

nothing, man. He covered

I flipped the desk with an animalistic bellow, raining papers and office supplies across the room. "I'm

cart and heaved it against the wall, shattering it

and slammed the

the frame nearly splintered. I ripped my suit jacket

parking lot

down my face.

with a strangled cry of anguish, pummeling the wheel over and over until

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

punctuated with another bone-jarring strike against the

had to be

the pain radiating through my hands chased away any hope of waking up. It was

forward to

on the

around me.

owned and liquidated nearly every asset to

spat at my own reflection in

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

my eyes shut, trying in vain to somehow make this waking nightmare go away. But the throbbing ache in my hands

gambled everything...and

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

was stuck fast, defying my increasingly

no!" I growled as I wrenched the key back and forth until