"Billy? This isn't the place … I can't do this with you right now. You shouldn't even be here."
"You're right. I shouldn't be here. You shouldn't be here. None of this should be happening. It's all like something out of a horror movie and I don't know how to stop it, so I'm doing the only thing I know to do. I'm begging you to please just stop it."
"How many times do I have to say this to you before you finally hear me? This what I'm doing. I'm going to marry Joe. You have to accept it."
"I've heard you. I've heard it every single time you've said it, but I haven't believed you … not once."
"So because you don't believe me you think I should just call the whole thing off? That's a good enough reason to upend my whole life?"
"That's not why I'm asking you to do this."
She stared into his face. "Then why? Why shouldn't I marry Joe. He's attractive, intelligent, driven and he knows me. He knows who I am and what I'm about. He isn't put off by that. He isn't busy trying to condemn every choice I've made and …"
"You want to know why? Because I don't want you to. And I know how ridiculous that must sound to you right now. But that's all I've got. That's the best reason I can give you. I'm asking you not to do this. I'm asking you to call this off, at least for now, at least until you know him better, at least until he's proven that he's changed and …"
"I don't need him to prove anything to me, Billy, just like he's not asking me to prove anything to him."
"I don't trust him, Phyllis. I don't think you should trust him either. I think he's going to hurt you even worse than I did."
His words caught her off guard and she felt them like a physical pain in her body. "I don't think that that's possible," she managed. "I need you to go, Billy. Now. Please. Before he gets back."
"Why? Are you afraid of him, Phyllis?" His stared at her, watching her every move, her every reaction, desperate to discern anything that might give him some indication of why she was behaving this way. "Has he hurt you? Because if he has, I swear to God I'll …"
"You're the one that hurt me, Billy. And you're still doing it. You're still undermining my choices. You're still treating me like I'm incapable of doing anything for any genuine reason. You don't think it's possible that someone could truly want to be with me? You don't think it's possible that someone could want to marry me just for me?"
A stunned silence paralyzed him for a moment. "I don't believe that for a minute," he finally managed. "I love you, Phyllis." It hadn't been something he'd planned to say, but at the moment it had felt like the most natural thing in the world. "I think you know that, but just in case you don't. Just in case the things I've done have made you doubt that, I want you to know that I love you, that no matter what kind of horrible stupid things I did, it didn't change the fact that I loved you. I did those things because I was hurt that someone I loved so much betray me and …" He stopped, recognizing the futility of getting into the conversation again. "Just know that I love you and that no matter what, I always will."
He waited for a moment, hoping for a response. He could see the softness in her eyes, the slight quiver of her lip and he knew she was fighting the urge to respond in kind. Instead, she turned away from him, her shoulders shaking with what he knew to be a stifled sob.
She held her breath, expecting to feel his touch, anticipating it, wondering if she'd be able to keep her body from melting into his embrace. The sound of the closing door was a like a slap in the face and she felt her heart break.
"Billy?" Lauren touched his shoulder gently as she reached to slow his hurried exit. "By the looks of you, it didn't go well."
"I …" He struggled to regain some sort of composure. "I just … I'm so worried for her, Lauren. This guy is a monster. After everything he did to Avery and Lily and Devon I just don't understand why she would do this."
"I know. I didn't get anywhere with her either. She's in that mode though. She's made up her mind and she's refusing to allow anyone or anything to factor into her decision." Her voice softened as she saw the absolute turmoil plastered across his face. "I know you're worried about her. I can see that. I'm worried too, but maybe this whole thing will work itself out. We've still got one more chance, right?"
He felt a small twinge of hope. "Yeah. You're right. We do. Thank you for that, by the way. I guess that's our only hope right now. We just have to wait and hope that he's arrogant and brazen enough to do what he does because she's certainly not going to trust me and I'm scared to death of what the alternative means."
"Better?" His hands slid over her shoulders as he gently massaged the tense muscles.
The feeling of his hands on her coupled with the burn of the liquor as it slid down her throat made her cringe slightly. "The drink helps. Yes." She slid away from him and forced a tense smile. "But I think it's probably time for you to head back to your room. We've got a busy day tomorrow, don't we?"
He narrowed his eyes. "We do, but something tells me you're still not feeling the love over here. And you're full of knots. We've got to figure out some way to help you relax. A good drink usually helps me, but another thing that can really help loosen me up is …." His hands found her body again, his fingertips gently nudging the straps of her dress off her shoulders this time.
"Joe," she said sternly as she reached up to cover his hands with hers. "Stop it. This isn't going to happen." She heard him sigh, but still felt his body pressed tight against hers.
"I know it's not the most traditional of arrangements for the bride and groom to spend the night before the wedding together, but since when are we traditional. We laugh in the face of tradition, don't we?"
"That's not what I mean." She looked up at him, the feelings of desperation becoming more than she could stand. "I don't know if I can do this. I really don't. I don't know if I can stand up there in front of all those people tomorrow and pretend this is something I want. People are going to see through this. They're going to know that something is off and everyone is trying to talk some sense into me and I'm making everyone think that I don't give a damn about what they think or what they feel and I just … my heart is …"
Instantly the space between them closed and his face was mere inches from hers. "You listen to me," he sneered. "We have a deal. You made a commitment and you're not about to back out of it now. I know you think you're some sort of bad ass, but the people you'll meet in prison, they'll give you nightmares. I'm offering you a chance to live a life you already want – a life you're already in the process of getting. You'll be able to prove to everyone that you can run a successful company. I'll be right by your side and together we'll be unstoppable. You'll be the face of Jabot, and it's a sexy, powerful, amazing …" He reached out, his hands tracing her body again before he lowered his lips onto hers.
She jerked back again. "Stop it. This doesn't change anything. You know exactly why I agreed to this. You know exactly why I'm going through with this and it doesn't have a damn thing to do with me going to jail."
"Awww…" He brought his hand to his heart in mock sentimentality. "And it warms my cold soul. Truly it does, but that doesn't change the fact that you're going to be my wife and sooner or later, we're …"
"Never. Do you hear me, Joe? Never. This marriage has nothing to do with love. It has nothing to do with attraction. You can make me marry you. You can make me take your name, but you will never make me share your bed."
He tilted his head in a way that almost read as a challenge. "Do you really think you're in a position to be throwing down gauntlets, Phyllis? With one phone call to the police, with one well placed file folder, you and Billy will both be serving time for embezzlement and fraud. You have a lot more to lose here than I do."
"I wouldn't count on that."
Phyllis turned quickly, her eyes flashing in shock as she saw Billy once again standing in the doorway. "What are you…?" Her mouth went dry as she saw the small device in his hand and her own words echoing back at her. "Billy," she breathed. "You …"
"It's okay, Phyllis." Billy stepped into the room, and quickly placed himself between the two of them. "You don't have to say anything else. It's time for Joe and I to have a conversation."