Realizing that you have a broken heart doesn't really hit you until you have a champagne glass in your hand, at least that's how it was for me.

Things had gone from completely shocking to totally weird in the span of an hour, and I had a bad case of whiplash to show for it.

Johnny and Robert were both flanking my sides, as Martin Vance sat directly in front of us. I still couldn't believe I was in a freaking Limo with Martin Vance. Hell, there were about a million other things I still couldn't believe.

Surprisingly, the ride was awfully quiet. I was too tired and worn out to ask questions. For once, I didn't want to know every detail of what was happening to me, at least not at that moment. Joshua had cheated me, but why?

I hated myself when the stupid tears started to roll down my cheeks. I watched them slip from my face and land inside of the glass in my hand. I obviously didn't feel like getting drunk right now, so I didn't mind that the drink was wasted. I was entranced by the patterns my tears would make in the liquid.  It was completely unexpected, and because my crying was mostly silent, no one else in the Limo noticed until a shaky sob finally escaped me.

I felt a strong hand on my shoulder and realized it belonged to Robert. We were practically on the same team now, so I let him. I honestly needed all of the comfort I could get. The streets were sort of packed, but we finally made it to a large skyscraper.

The entire thing looked like it was made of just glass, and it obviously belonged to Martin. The guy hadn't spoken a word to me yet, only nodded to acknowledge my presence when we saw him outside of what used to be my job. He had exchanged a few whispered words with Johnny, which ticked me off. I was now fully aware that the two were friends, or at least worked together.

I knew the minute that I stepped onto the shiny limo that I had changed teams. I belonged to the dark side now, or did I? I had no clue what the fucking dark side was. It all felt pretty dark to me.

We were finally led down a stunning hallway and into a gold plated elevator. We passed by a receptionist desk. I was too distracted when I initially walked in, but for some odd reason the girl in the receptionist desk ducked down when she saw us.

We only saw a head of short straight hair fly down towards the floor.  The chick sounded like a total mess under the desk, because I heard a sharp thump and then loud cursing. Martin sure had lunatics working for him. Was this what I was getting into?

"Damn, Fuckcakes!" A shrill voice yelled from under the desk.

That's when I realized how familiar the voice sounded. This was no ordinary encounter. My eyes practically flew out of my sockets when I formed the connection between the voice and the person who had it.

"Min to the fucking Nerva!" I yelled, sounding like a total idiot myself.

A sharp elbow was the first thing I saw emerge from under the desk. Minerva's head and shoulders came next, until I could see her breathing heavily in my direction.

Minerva tried to smooth out her hair while looking nonchalant. I snorted, because it was obvious that she sucked at being inconspicuous.

"Well, hello Lilly!" Minerva greeted cheerfully. The poor girl practically climbed onto her rollie chair, now that she had no reason to hide.  At least she had the decency to look guilty. I wanted to be mad at Minerva and Martin. I wanted to demand answers and feel betrayed.

 Too bad Joshua had ruined the possibility of that. In all honesty I was ready for anything at that point. If I were to find out that Johnny was actually not gay and was secretly the president of the United States, I would not have batted an eyelash.

"Oh, hi! Fancy seeing you here!" I was trying to act just as ridiculous as her. In all honesty I tried to be mad at Minerva, but there was something different about her. The hard bitter crabby shell she used to have was surprisingly missing. I mean, she still dressed and looked the same. Also, I was sure that her bitchy side was still intact, but something was unsettling her. You could tell by the way her hands were slightly shaking.

"Yeah, it is fancy." Minerva spoke breathlessly, bringing one of her short locks back behind her ear in the process. Yup, her hand was definitely shaking.

"Shall we continue to the meeting room?" Martin Vance brought a hand up in the room's direction. My eyes were still on Minerva, which was why I noticed the way Minerva's hand went into total "Shake Mode" at the sound of Martin's voice.

And then I finally found out why Minerva had the red beanie in Paris. Why? Because Martin Vance was the Red Beanie Bum, and I was a total moron. The damn signs had all been there! From the New Year's party, now Martin's words made sense! God, I was seriously an imbecile.

How the flying fuck had I not realized it earlier? I wanted to yell out that I finally got it, but I kept quiet. I was going to grill Martin once we got to the meeting room, I promised myself. I saw Robert and Johnny nod in Martin's direction, signaling him that it was fine to move towards the meeting room. Before I followed, I turned back to catch sight of Minerva and Martin one last time.

"Min, Hold my calls." Martin ordered breezily.

I expected Minerva to smile and comply. I mean, she was his secretary. Instead I got a glimpse of Minerva's bitchy side, yet totally different.

"I told you not to call me Min!" Minerva whispered through her teeth. Although her tone was annoyed, her eyes definitely didn't show it. I more than anyone knew when Minerva really had it out for someone, and it definitely wasn't Martin Vance.

"Your request has been noted, Min." Martin taunted, before sending her a wink and walking towards me. I spun around after that, hating to be caught as a spy. Although, now I knew fully well that Martin the fucking Vance was a total eavesdropper. The guy had practically stalked me for information! I was beginning to see just how good Martin Vance was at getting the facts. The more I thought about the Red Beanie Bum, the more he resembled Martin.

I couldn't hold it any longer, the minute the door closed to the meeting room the words escaped my lips.

"You're The Red Beanie Bum!" I yelled, throwing a pointed finger in Martin's direction. I don't know why I expected him to deny it, but I did. Instead of the tearful pleads for forgiveness, I got a hearty chuckle. Yup, the guy definitely had a twisted sense of humor and it was showing.

"Damn! I cannot believe it took you this long, Fenster!" Johnny practically scoffed, running a hand through his face.

"Hey, excuse me for not paying more attention to the guy stalking me!" I yelled defensively before thinking better of it.

"Exactly! I betted on you figuring it out sooner!" Johnny practically deadpanned.

Oh, well he did have a point. God, I didn't even know what I was saying anymore.

 Martin had already settled into the main chair. It didn't take long until all four of us were seated in a similar table, just like the one that Lanning had been head of a few hours ago. This time Martin Vance was seated at the head of the table, and instead of black marble there was dark mahogany wood.

The room itself felt expensive. The modern edge from Lanning's meeting room was replaced by a warmer and richer atmosphere. You could obviously see the expensive wallpaper and furniture. The entire fourth wall to my right was made of pure glass, making it a clear window to the outside world. Other than that, the room wasn't very modern itself.

"Lilly Fenster...Didn't I tell you that you would be next?" Martin smiled, his hands folded on top of the table.

"Hold on there, if you want me to be on your side you're going to have to answer my questions first!" I demanded, crossing my arms over my chest. I was through with letting people tell me things in due time. Look how great that had ended up with Joshua!

"It's only fair." Johnny answered this time. I looked over to see Robert simply twirling his thumbs on the table. It looked like he had already been informed of all there was to know.

"Johnny is correct. What is it that you want to know Ms. Fenster?" Martin Vance asked pleasantly. Something about his calm and cool exterior unsettled me. Again, I felt like he knew all of my secrets and could use them against me at any second.

"Have you and Johnny been working together this whole time?" I decided to start off easy. I wanted to ask Martin if he really was the Red Beanie Bum, but that would have been irrelevant. Just like a Genie, my questions were limited with Martin, I could feel it.

"We have been working for some time. That is correct"

"How did you know that Joshua and Gola were going to announce their engagement?"

"Like I said, Johnny and I have been working together for some time. Everything Lanning would tell Johnny, Johnny would tell me."

I scoffed. Johnny was such a rat. At least I wasn't realizing that he was any better than Lanning or her team. It hurt to think that Joshua and I weren't a part of the same side. I was so stupid. I still felt like we were on the same page. Joshua was mine and he couldn't have done something so stupid for his sister's cause. It was a mistake. I was going to prove the obvious wrong.

"Alright, last question. Why do you need me on your side?"

It really didn't make sense. I was no one at that point, only the sucky manager who ended up falling in love for the male model and getting her heartbroken in the end. I was the loser who cried beside the copy machine for God's sake!

"Because, you're our main component, Fenster." Marin said simply. I didn't like the way he described me as a component. As if I were just some part of a machine. If so, couldn't he just get a different part?

"Lilly, it's not all like the way Martin is making things sound." This time Robert finally spoke up. His once annoying Texan accent was now sounding as the only comforting thing to my ears.

"Martin and Johnny really need you to bring Lanning down. That woman is a total bitch. Just look at what she did to Joshua and you!" Robert stood to emphasize his point. It was all just too much.

"Oh, puh-lease! Robert, I appreciate your support, but don't put Lachowski in a nice light. We all know that he's just as bad as Lanning." Johnny spoke out, a small hint of maliciousness in his tone.

That's when my defensive mode came on. Yeah, Joshua had betrayed me, but I still believed that it had all been twisted. I knew that Joshua had a reason for what he did. At that moment I had to believe that his love for me was real, as real as mine was for him.

God, I was seriously turning into a total cheese ball.

"You take Joshua out of this! H-h-he had nothing to do with this stupid mess!" The words escaped me with pure anger and adrenaline. I couldn't understand why my voice had to stutter, though.

"Oh, Lilly. That is where you still don't understand. Why don't you ask Vance about Joshua's role in everything?" Johnny spoke to me. I wanted to say that he was a rude liar, but Johnny looked at me with sympathy again.

The words to fight wouldn't come to me. Damn, this always happened when I was confronted! I could never really fight when it came down to it.

"You know why you're scared? You, Lilly Fenster, are scared to learn the truth about Joshua Lachowski, but it's time someone told you. I think this is finally the time for you to realize that Joshua isn't such a noble Golden Boy. It's time you realize who he really is." Johnny spoke solemnly. He didn't look like he took particular joy in telling me those things, which only made me feel confused and scared. Was he right? Did I not know everything?

I looked at Robert for help, but even he was looking down towards the ground.

Fuck, it looked like it was true.

"Tell me." I ordered, not bothering to look any of the three men in the room with my eyes. I stared at the expensive carpet, instead.

I stared, waiting for my heart to break even more.

AND HERE IS THE NEXT CHAPTER!

What do you guys think the truth about Joshua is? Will Lilly finally learn that he's not such a great guy? Or are Martin and Johnny lying to her? DUM DUM DUUUUUM!

Thank you so much for reading Sugar Babe and voting! I really appreciate the votes and reads! Sorry the update took so long, school was kicking my butt!

Finally, Watty Awards are close -only a month! I have to finish Sugar Babe by then D: - so please, VOTE, VOTE, VOTE! Thanks! :) Your comments and votes really motivate me to write more, so thanks again! LOL have I said thanks already? WELL THANK YOU AGAIN.