Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 64851 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64851 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
Her chest tightened with each threat. She knew Nick was capable of being brutal but this… “Noted.” She was on the verge of hanging up when he added,
“To be quite frank, I’d like you to go away quietly as possible, so I’m willing to make concessions. The house you’re currently living in is legally mine. I’ll give you 90 days to vacate the premises. Take the furniture if you want. I don’t want anything you’ve touched. That should give you enough time to find another place to stay. I’m also willing to cut you a check for 100 thousand to quietly disappear and to never show your face around me or my mother again.”
“I thought you said you I wouldn’t see a dime,” I shot back for lack of anything else to say.
“Maybe I should have clarified: you won’t see a dime of my brother’s money. I’m giving you this one time-offer from me. It’s enough to hold you over until you find your next mark.”
I’d had enough at this point. Without another word, I hung up and turned off my phone. I didn’t want or need to hear anymore. Besides, I didn’t want anything from Kenny’s estate. Having to move out of this house sooner than I would have liked would be a setback I didn’t expect, but even so, I could figure something out by then. I had a new job that paid well enough to support me, so at least there was that.
My chest was so tight after that call, I could barely breath. The throbbing that had started in my head as slight tension was a now a full-blown migraine. It felt as if there were a family of tap dancers inside my brain.
There was another part of me that hurt way more. My heart. I didn’t want to still care even a little but about Nick, but I did, and it hurt like fuck. His scathing words tore me as if I were being flayed by the devil himself. He was in for quite a surprise when he realized I didn’t want his money, and I’d gladly disappear from is life. His entire family had caused me nothing but grief since the day I met them.
I just didn’t know when I’d first met Nick that finally saying yes to him would cost me so much.
He attempted to call again, but I ignored all his attempts. I received a certified letter in the mail from a law firm basically putting his offer in writing in offer. I ripped it to shreds. Not long after that, I was fired from my job. I had no doubt that Nick was behind that. I understood that he held me responsible for Kenny’s death and no amount of my trying to convince him otherwise would change his mind, so I didn’t bother. For him to go after my livelihood was a low I didn’t think even he would stoop to.
When I’d gotten fired, my first instinct was to drive to his job and kick him square in the balls. It wouldn’t do me any good in the long run, but at the end of the day, it would provide me with the temporary satisfaction of making him hurt as much as I was at the time.
On top of having just lost my job, unjustifiably so, Adam popped back into my world adding more chaos to the mess I now called my life. It was for my brother that I had to swallow my pride and deal with the devil himself.
When I’d called him to set up this meeting, I had to call his office because I had deleted it from my phone a while back. Considering how our last conversation had gone, I was surprised his Executive Assistant had patched me through to him right away. What was even more surprising was that he didn’t seem at all surprised to hear from me.
“Francesca.”
His deep baritone, devoid of all warmth as he spoke my name, sent a shiver down my spine. Not the same type of shiver I used to enjoy. It was just one word, but I knew this call wouldn’t be easy.
“Nick, I think you already know why I’m calling.”
“Do I? Why don’t you enlighten me?”
Bastard.
“Look, I’m not going to waste your time….” I swallowed the lump in my throat and clinched my fist at my side. God this hurt. “That offer you made. I-I’d like to take advantage of it.”
“Of course you would because taking advantage is your specialty, but the offer is off the table.”
The room started to spin, and my stomach dropped to my feet. I needed this money. It literally represented life or death to me. “So I suppose I’ll just have to contest the will after all….” I don’t know what made me say that considering his already credible threat of tying it up in courts for years to come, but desperation did strange things to people.