Living in a web of lies

[Hey, Fil. I saw your truck in my place this morning. I wonder why it was here? Is everything okay?]

Fil listened to Vincent's voicemail after spending her entire morning in Jackson's arms. Her hair was still damp as she just finished showering while Jackson was still inside. Yes, she even showered with him. She already lost her mind. 

"Right…" she whispered, remembering she parked her truck in its designated slot near his. "I forgot about that detail."

Fil pressed her lips into a thin line as she gripped her phone tightly. She then held the phone with both her hands, typing her response, only to stop midway. 

[If you want revenge and want assistance, you have to bear in mind you can't pity them. Even the slightest.]

Answering and making excuses to not make Vincent 'misunderstand' was the same as going into bad habits. Even though the excuse she would tell him was a lie, why would she text him? Shouldn't she call him? After all, what she needed right now was enough reason to hate him.

Also, she wanted to see if Vincent would sound different. 

Would he talk to her without a trace of guilt? It wasn't like she was hopeful, but with all that she found out in a short span of time, she wanted to see things differently. 

With that thought in mind, Fil unhesitatingly called him back. It was a little later than usual as she would always call him back, but she still tried. Much to her surprise, Vincent answered after two rings. That was unusual. 

"Fil?" called Vincent from the other end of the line. "Is everything alright?"

"Hmm?" she hummed.

"You sound a little off," he pointed out. "And also, Marianne said you didn't go to work. She's been calling you because she was worried."

'Worried?' Fil almost laughed out loud, thinking that Marianne didn't sound worried while moaning Vincent's name last night. 

"I woke up," she answered, which wasn't entirely false. Fil often wakes up before sunrise. 

"How can you oversleep? That's weird," Vincent murmured but didn't think much about it. "Anyway, why's your truck in my place? You never left it there."

Fil didn't answer immediately.

"Didn't you say you will be on a three-day trip?" she asked, diverting the questions. "How did you find out my truck was in your place?"

"Ahh…" for a second, her question caught him off guard. "Well, our investor had some emergency yesterday. So we have to cancel the meeting."

"And you went home last night?"

"Yes."

Fil smiled, biting her lips as she restrained herself from laughing in ridicule. "Why didn't you tell me? I could've dropped by to your place since I left my truck there."

"Well… I didn't know you were going to my place. Also, I came home late, and I was very tired."

"Late? How late?"

"Around midnight?" Vincent frowned. "Fil, why does it sound like I'm being interrogated? Are you thinking that I purposely didn't tell you because I didn't want you to know?"

Fil smacked her lips and glanced to the side, watching Jackson come out of the shower. A subtle smile appeared on her face, recalling she came to this place around midnight. In other words, Vincent was just lying. Not that she didn't know that. After all, before meeting Jackson or before she went to the nightclub, she already knew Vincent wasn't on a business trip.

'How foolish of me to have hoped he would change his tone,' she told herself, smiling bitterly while Jackson hugged her from behind. 'This wasn't the first time he lied to me.'

By the tone of Vincent's voice, there was nothing amiss. How could he smile and talk so carefree, knowing everything he was saying was nothing but a lie? He sounded so natural, which meant this man she loved like crazy had been lying to her for a very long time.

"I thought there was something wrong with my car." Fil stretched her neck, letting Jackson trace kisses on her neck while Vincent was on the other end of the line. "So I brought it there so you can check it. I mean, you're busy these days. I brought it to you to save you some time."

If he could lie while smiling in front of her, why couldn't she?

What Vincent was doing to her, she would return it ten times even nastier. Thus, Fil allowed herself to get distracted as a hand crept up her thigh, feeling another hand on her back as Jackson bent her over. 

"Is that so?" Vincent rocked his head, raising his eyebrow as he could hear Fil's deep breaths. "Are you okay? You sound like… you're panting?"

Fil breathed out, biting her lips as she looked back. There, standing behind her, was Jackson. The moment their eyes met, he smirked and pulled out his hand from her, licking it sensually. 

'Goodness… this guy,' she whispered inwardly, swallowing down the tension in her throat. "It's just… I'm having cramps. Yes. Cramps. I'll rest for now. Talk to you later."

With that being said, Fil didn't even wait for Vincent to say another word and hung up. As soon as she did, she dropped her phone to the side and rested her hand on the surface of the desk. 

"What a bad, bad girl," Jackson quipped. "It would have been nice to keep him on the line as I fuck his fiancee."

"Are you… insane?"

His smile stretched from ear to ear until his eyes looked like curve slits. "We are." 

*

*

*

Meanwhile, Vincent looked at his phone strangely. 

"Did she just hang up on me?" he wondered, a bit surprised that not only did Fil take an entire morning to respond to him, but she also hung up first. "She's on her period? Should I visit her?"

Vincent hummed a long tune as he thought that whenever Fil was having cramps, she could barely get out of bed. Not that she would suffer monthly, but there were times she was like that. 

"I'm back!" Suddenly, a young lady came in the front passenger seat, snatching Vincent's attention. "Why are you looking at your phone with that look on your face?"

"Fil said she doesn't feel well," he said. "She always has terrible cramps."

"Oh…" the young lady nodded in understanding. "Should we go see her?"

"Hmm." Vincent pondered and smiled. "Nevermind. I'll check on her later. Mom and Dad will get angry if I don't come."

"Tsk tsk tsk." The young lady shook her head mildly. "You should break up with her. I mean, sister Marianne is much better, especially in style. She's also fun, unlike Fil, who is too serious in life."

"Valerie…"

"I'm just saying! Mom and Dad also like her!" Valerie, his little sister, pouted. "If not for Grandpa, our family wouldn't want a country bumpkin like her."

"That country bumpkin is my fiancee and your future sister-in-law." Vincent's tone dropped, sliding his eyes to the front passenger seat. "Marianne is nice, but compared to Fil, she doesn't have anything to put on the table. So, behave yourself whenever Fil is around unless you want me to freeze your cards."