Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 64628 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 323(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64628 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 323(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
“I do love her.”
Pain flashes through her eyes so fast before she hides it again.
“But I love you, too.”
She shakes her head, my hand dropping from her face. “You can’t love two women, Ryken. You just can’t.”
“Who are you to tell me who to love, Barbie?”
“When does he come for me?” She changes the subject. “What is the plan?”
This is the part I’m not looking forward to. I was hoping to avoid it to the very last minute. But to Barbie, I cannot lie. No matter who else I lie to, to her it’s near impossible.
“He comes in two days, for collection.”
She staggers, then sits on the bed. She looks up to me, pure shock on her face.
“And you are just going to hand me over?”
My head nods, even if it doesn’t want to. “It’s my job to do so. She’s pregnant, Barbie, they can’t have her. The child will be my heir.”
“I could go to the police,” she says in hope.
I shake my head. “You would be dead the minute you left. No trail to them then. They have connections. We have connections. I would very much advise against that.”
She shakes her head and starts walking in a circle. “My business,” she says as a tear rolls down her face.
“Quinn will find a replacement.”
She shakes her head. “It’s mine. I built it from the ground up. You don’t understand. You have been given everything your whole life. I had to work for that business.” My hand reaches out to touch her, but she pushes my hand away. “Don’t touch me, Ryken, I mean it.”
My hands go up in surrender. “Let me help, Barbie.” Tears are now streaming down her face.
“You can’t help. You could never help. We should have listened from the beginning. We should have stayed away from each other. But no, we had to cross that line, we had to fuck up both of our lives.” She wipes at her face angrily as she looks to me. “How long for? How long will I be gone?”
I look down to the ground then back up to her. “He has you for six months.”
“Nope. No fucking way.” She reaches for the knife on my bedside table that I used to eat my apple this morning then puts it on her wrist and slices. My body moves to stop her before I even realize what she has done. Blood starts to drip all over my white floors, and her eyes are filled with tears.
“Quinn.” He’s unlocking and opening the door before I can cover her wrist. He looks to her then to me as I wrap it, and grabs the knife, taking it away and coming back with a first aid kit.
Looking up, she smiles. “I could make it so much easier for both of us. Just look away, Ryken, look away.”
Shaking my head, I stand, walking to the door as Quinn walks in then I walk out.
Leaving her bleeding on the floor.
Chapter 26
Saskia
He doesn’t say a word to me as he bandages my wrist, he doesn’t even look at me with pity. He just does his job then walks out, leaving me in my white dress on a very white floor stained with my blood. It was the fastest and quickest solution. But maybe not one of the brightest decisions I’ve ever made. I manage to stand, picking up my bag with my other hand and walking to the door.
Ryken’s sitting at the top of the stairs when I walk out of his door. His head down low and not saying a word. He knows I’m here, my heels are a giveaway and hard to miss.
“Why would you do that, Barbie?”
Shaking my head, I have no words to answer him. It was a stupid move.
“Maybe it would be better to have the problem taken away. My life is good now, Ryken, and soon it’s about to become my worst nightmare. All because I didn’t listen to you one night.” My face is wet with tears. He stands, not stopping until he reaches me and slams my body to his, wrapping his arm around my waist.
“You aren’t a problem, but this one I can’t fix. I’ve tried to fix it, Barbie, so many fucking times I’ve tried.”
I believe him. Every word he’s just said, I believe him. He wouldn’t let anyone take me without trying everything he could possibly try. Even with a year between us, I still know that much. Because when I look into his eyes, he’s still the same man that looks back at me like I’m more than who I’m meant to be. To him, I’m more than a girl that couldn’t afford a private school. More than a girl who was raised by a mother who never cared. More than the girl who was raised in a trailer.