Total pages in book: 199
Estimated words: 200280 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1001(@200wpm)___ 801(@250wpm)___ 668(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 200280 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1001(@200wpm)___ 801(@250wpm)___ 668(@300wpm)
I fist my fingers at my sides. “You mean those debt collectors.”
My father narrows his eyes at me. “Why don’t you leave the details to the grown-ups and focus on looking pretty? I can handle the money aspect.”
My nails are digging into my skin. “But aren’t grown-ups the ones who got us into trouble in the first place, Dad? So you had to come to me, a dumb puny girl who’s only good for looking pretty, to get you out of your gambling debts.”
Yup, that’s exactly what’s happened.
Apparently my father, along with screwing barely legal girls, is also a gambler. Something that I never knew. Granted I never knew a lot of things about my dad, but still. And even more apparently, he has been running himself into debt for years. But now the hole’s so deep that he needs help pulling himself out.
Enter me, his young daughter that he can marry off to a rich family — the Vandekamps — so he can partner up with them and steal all their hard-earned money by selling them his company that’s secretly bankrupt. Oh, and since the Vandekamps have expressed the desire to announce the acquisition of Jackson Enterprises on the day of the wedding, kinda like a double celebration, my father is dying for a wedding date.
An advanced one because those debt collectors are breathing down his neck. Apparently, it needs to be mentioned that they are Russian and so somehow that makes them even more dangerous.
In any case, I don’t think this is the first time he’s done this.
Stealing money, I mean.
While I can’t prove it, I do think my father’s business — he’s a real estate mogul; not as big as the Vandekamps, but still — is not entirely legit. I think he’s been involved in a lot of shady, criminal behavior over the years. But since he’s richer than sin — only in theory right now — he’s got all the cops and judges and lawyers and all the important people in his pocket.
Well, except for these Russian debt collectors.
But I can’t really point fingers, can I?
I’m helping him dupe a perfectly innocent family. Yes, I’m doing it under duress. Because my father has promised retribution on my brother if I don’t. And I know he’ll carry out his threat. I know he’ll destroy my brother’s new business — a garage for vintage cars called Auto Alpha — and/or hurt his new family, his own daughter-in-law and granddaughter.
And after everything that my brother’s done for me, I cannot let that happen.
Ever.
But I’m still complicit. I’m still a bad guy like my dad.
And God, I hate him.
I absolutely fucking hate my father for making me do this.
“You like running your fucking mouth, don’t you?” my dad says softly, threateningly. “I’d ask you to refrain, but then I think I like it. I like that you’re trying to be a brave little mouse. Because then I really get to show you what I’ve got in store for your brother. For leaving me and the family business.”
Despite my anger, fear stabs my chest.
I knew it.
I knew my dad’s been looking for a reason to hurt Reed ever since he managed to distance himself from our dad. When I said that Reed put himself in between me and my dad, I really meant it. He did everything that our father demanded of him, including working at our father’s company even when he hated it. And for years, he was miserable. Until he found a way to separate himself from everything and do what he really wanted to do.
And I can’t be the reason that everything that’s he’s built for himself over the last few months is destroyed.
Or worse, he gets pulled back in.
So as much as I want to smack my own father’s face, I say, “I told you that I’d do it, didn’t I? I am doing it. I am fucking engaged to the man you want and I’ll get you that wedding date. So I’d appreciate it if you stopped threatening me every two seconds.”
His lips pull into a cold smile. “Not you, baby girl, your brother. I’d never hurt you.”
I pull in a deep breath. “Is there anything else?”
Slowly shaking his head, he goes, “Not right now, no.” Then, “And don’t be late tomorrow. You don’t want to keep him waiting.”
Free at last, I walk out of his office but unfortunately run into a different kind of monster.
My mother.
While my dad always ignored me growing up, my mother both ignored my existence and seemed annoyed that I’d want to spend time with her. She’d look at me like I was a nuisance, following her around, when she had so many better things to do such as parties, going shopping, fucking guys and so on. So then I took to trying out her makeup and her shoes, copying her dress sense so that she’d think we’re similar to each other. Never happened, but yeah, I tried a lot with her.