Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 96752 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96752 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
He holds me so tight and takes a long breath before letting me go. His hand is in mine when he turns back to her. “What do you want? You don’t have the tape or you would have released it. By the way, your guy on the inside has been fired, and you’re lucky we’re not prosecuting.”
I squeeze his hand to let him know I’m with him. Lawyer would love to. Damn it. I need to figure out that man’s name.
“I’m not sure how you managed that, but it makes no difference,” she says, regarding us with a cool smile. “The tape was merely to humiliate you. I can certainly get out the word that it exists and I’m far too much of a lady to ever put such a thing out there. The fact that you’re cheating on me is enough. I have an excellent reputation among my fans. They’re women, by the way. Women who watch home and garden shows. Women who like to boycott men who cheat.”
“Except it’s not cheating.” I do feel the need to point that out.
She ignores me. “So you can move ahead with this…worker person.”
“Contractor,” I correct.
“Fine. You can move on with this contractor and you’ll lose your chance at the show. You’ll be vilified, and no one will work with you or your brother. Especially after I put out the truth about him. You can sell this place and move to Arizona or wherever poor Americans go.”
“Hey, the Phoenix real estate market would like a word.” Because those prices are soaring. I should know. I tried to convince my mother she needed some sun. Then she told me I need some sons, and I went back to drinking heavily.
He sighs and frowns down at me. “You can’t help it, can you?”
“Sarcasm is how I deal with stress,” I admit. I am feeling stressed because I know whatever Britta says next is going to be terrible.
“Or we can change this narrative entirely,” Britta offers. “I think you’ll find I sat down with a couple of journalists to talk about my epic love story and how many times I’ve forgiven you since you’re the love of my life.”
“You don’t love anyone but yourself,” Reid replies, but he seems calmer now.
“No one else needs to know this.” Britta shrugs it off and settles her designer bag over her elbow. “Now, if you choose to work with me, I think you’ll find your image rehabbed and all doors open to you within a year or so. Of course, you’ll need to quit the show you’re working on right now. I can’t have my husband working with his former mistress.”
Reid drops my hand. “I’m not going to marry you.”
She gives him a chilly smile. “Of course you are, and the truth of the matter is this is the best course of action for you as well. Your brother will fuck up again, and you’ll lose it all.”
“We lost it all because of you.” His eyes narrow, and he moves toward her.
“Hey, babe. If we’re going to murder her, we should do it when there aren’t a bunch of photographers she hired downstairs.” I’m pretty sure this is what they mean by being the voice of reason. “We should wait until we have excellent alibis and she doesn’t see it coming. I would say poison, but we all know she doesn’t eat. Maybe we could sit a Birkin bag out on a frozen lake and then oops, she falls through the ice.”
“I am unamused by you,” she says, her eyes rolling before she looks back to Reid. “I suppose you have to decide between your ordinary-looking contractor person and the brother you spent your whole life protecting. Also, you should know I intend to tell the press I’m pregnant.”
“You’re pregnant? Whose baby is it?” Reid asks, sounding shocked for the first time.
I’m not. I know this play. “She’s not pregnant. She’ll tearfully put out a statement in a couple of months that she lost the baby and either the story will be that her husband is by her side or he ran off with the help. Either way she gains sympathy, and that makes me wonder. What are you trying to hide?”
For the first time Britta looks slightly unsettled. “I’m not hiding anything. I’m simply done waiting. I’ve always known Reid and I are endgame, as you Americans like to call it. Think about it, Reid. It’s your choice. It always has been, and you always come back to me. Hooper, you should think about that. Did you know he made love to me in Ralavia? He left that part out, didn’t he?”
“Yes, he did, because it’s not true. Now you should leave, and you’ll have our answer soon.” The only reason I don’t throw her out on her skinny ass is I think Reid needs some time to process.