Chapter 20
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“It’s not what it looks like,” I said quickly, my voice trembling as I looked from him to the photo again. My heart was racing so fast it hurt. “Rick, please, I swear…”
His eyes snapped back to mine, dark and furious.
His hand slammed against the wall next to my head, making me flinch. “I said you could do what you wanted as long as it wasn’t in public,” he shouted, his voice sharp enough to slice through the air between us. His eyes were wild, chest heaving. “You don’t know what’s at stake here. People are watching you, they won’t stop and I know you don’t understand why any of this is happening but you cannot jeaopardize this.”
I opened my mouth to answer, but he stepped back suddenly, dragging a hand through his hair so roughly it looked like he might rip it out. He turned away from me, his shoulders tense and his breathing ragged.
“This marriage is still new,” he said, voice lower but still edged with anger. He started pacing, feet moving quickly across the rug. “It needs to be convincing. We’ve been working non–stop to get the articles taken down, to stop the photos from spreading, but the damage is already done.”
I took a step forward, reaching a hand out to him. My fingers hovered over his arm but I couldn’t bring myself to touch him. My throat felt raw. “Rick, I didn’t know. I didn’t think…”
He turned on me with a glare that made me freeze. His jaw was tight, eyes locked on mine like he couldn’t decide if he wanted to scream or break something. He let out a strangled noise, shoved past me, and stormed out the study door.
I hurried after him, my footsteps quick and light as I followed him down the stairs. The silence between us was heavy, pressing down on my chest with every step. I kept my head down, afraid to look at his face again.
When we reached the bottom of the stairs, Rick’s father was standing near the front door. His expression was grim, eyes flicking between the two of us like he’d been waiting. His hands were clenched behind his back, his suit jacket straining across his shoulders.
“We need to fix this now,” Rick’s father said sharply. His voice was cold, cutting, like he was barely holding himself together. His eyes landed on me, hard and unblinking, and I felt my stomach twist.
Rick stopped in the middle of the foyer, breathing hard. His hand rose to rub the back of his neck, his eyes squeezed shut for a moment before opening again. He didn’t look at me. He just stared at his father, his jaw clenched so tight the muscle there pulsed.
I stood a few steps behind Rick, arms crossed over my chest to stop myself from shaking. I felt like I was watching everything from outside my own body. The grand entryway felt too big, too empty, every tick of the clock on the wall echoing in my cars.
I opened my mouth, voice small. “Fix what? I don’t understand what I did…”
Rick’s father cut me off with a harsh look. “You need to understand that you don’t have the luxury of mistakes anymore,” he said, voice rising. “Every move you make reflects on this family. Every breath you take outside this house can turn into a headline. And right now, you’ve given them exactly what they
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wanted.”
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Rick dropped his hand from his neck, his eyes flicking up to meet mine for the first time since the study.
His face was pale, but his eyes burned like dark coals. His chest rose and fell with each ragged breath, like he was trying to rein himself in.
His father’s jaw worked, fury practically steaming from his ears. “I organized something to fix this mess,” he finally ground out. “A private honeymoon trip. You leave tonight, the press will cover it as the perfect romantic gesture to silence the rumors. You know none of this would have happened if you would have just listened to me and marry the cultured sister and-”
“That’s fucking enough,” Rick cut him off but that was the least of my worries.
“What?” I blurted, voice rising, cutting them both off, “I can’t just leave! What about my daughter?”
Rick’s gaze flicked to me, and for a moment I thought I saw something soften in his eyes but when he ooked back at his father, his face was carved from granite. “She’ll be well taken care of,” he said firmly, eyes locked with mine. “I’ll make sure of it.”
The words stunned me. I knew he meant it, he might hate me, but he wouldn’t let anything happen to Lena, I could just tell.
This was all happening too fast, I would never have expected an innocent trip to end up this way.
swallowed hard, turning away as my thoughts swirled. I rushed back upstairs to Lena’s room. She looked up from her coloring, her face instantly lighting up. “Mommy!”
dropped to my knees and hugged her so tightly she squealed. “Mommy has to go away for a little while,” I whispered against her hair, “but I promise I’ll come back and you’ll be here with your toys and the nice people to take care of you.”
Her eyes went big and round. “Are you leaving because of the angry man?”
bit my lip, fighting tears, “no, baby, mommy just has something important to do.”
She hugged me back, arms wrapped around my neck, “I’ll miss you.”
kissed her cheeks, her forehead, her little hands, “I’ll miss you more.”
After I finally forced myself to leave her room, I packed my suitcase in silence. Every time I folded a dress or tucked away a pair of shoes, I felt like I was losing control of my life all over again. When I zipped the bag shut, a soft knock came at the door.
A maid stepped in, carrying a black velvet box, “Mr. Sterling asked me to deliver this,” she said quietly, placing it on the bed before slipping out.
I frowned, sitting down as I flipped open the box. My breath caught.
Inside was a collection of lingerie, delicate lace and silk in shades of black, red, and white. Bras, panties, garters…each piece more daring than the last. The soft fabric gleamed under the light, looking so
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Chapter 20
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expensive it made my head spin.
Heat climbed up my neck. My fingers trembled as I picked up a scrap of red lace, the scent of fresh fabric and faint cologne clinging to it. My mind raced. Was this really what he expected? My heart thundered in my chest.
“I’m going to be stuck on a honeymoon trip with Rick,” I whispered to myself, voice barely audible over the pounding in my cars.
A knock at the door broke my thoughts. “Mrs. Sterling?” a staff member called softly. “The car is ready.”
I stood slowly, gripping the lingerie box like it might slip through my fingers, and followed the maid to the waiting car outside. My legs felt weak as I stepped into the night, the cold air biting at my skin, a hundred questions screaming in my head as the sleek black car idled at the curb.
