30. Pepper
Ididn’t sleep all night. Not that the private plane I was forced into wasn’t top of the line comfort, fully catered and friendly staffed. But I wouldn’t dare close my eyes.
I felt like such a fool the entire trip back to Virginia.
Lonnie is going to kill me.
I almost laugh at my delusion. She’s no longer my boss. There’s no reason to fake being an Ice Girl.
My cover is blown.
I picked on a few berries and crackers on the plane and didn’t say no to coffee from the friendly waitress the moment the sun was up, but other than that, I hadn’t spoken to anyone or eaten a thing.
I was quietly walked to a hotel suite I recognize. It’s the same one I was in on my wedding day. Doug the actor didn’t say anything before he left me in here. Just that it was nice meeting me and that he hopes there’s no hard feelings.
I’m sitting on a light blue tufted armchair when Troy walks in. I spare him a glance and turn back to the window.
“I’m not marrying you,” I say before he has the chance to close the door.
“Message received, sweetheart. Unfortunately, this is no longer a love commitment.”
“Got that right. It’s kidnapping,” I mutter.
“Penelope stop being so dramatic.”
He sits in the armchair across from me, and I lean in to make myself very clear. “My name is Pepper.”
“That’s not a name. It’s a condiment.”
I lean back, turning my eyes back on the trees outside the window, making me miss the mountains. Making me miss home.
“Look, it’s only three years. It’s not like I’m asking for a lifetime here. You’ll have money. A name. Connections. Anything you want.”
“Why do you care so much? What is this about anyway? Appearances? You already have a runaway bride in the press, do you really want to add divorce to it?”
“Half the politicians these days get divorced. I’m not concerned about it. You leaving me before I’m elected. That, I can’t have.”
“And you made damn sure of it.”
“I’m prepared.”
I cross my arms. “Yeah, well so am I. I have a lawyer and I will press charges for taking me against my will.”
He pushes off the chair and crosses the room in frustration, shouting. “Are you tied up? Were you brought here with a bag over your head? I’m not a monster, P, I’m your fiancé.”
“I don’t want to marry you,” I shout back.
He sighs, and there’s silence between us for a moment before his eyes fall to my ring finger. “But you want to marry someone else.”
“Yes.”
He licks his lips, his eyes growing soft. A flash of the man I used to know coming through. “I need three years, Penelope. And the money is yours,” he says softly, practically pleading.
This is new.
“What money?”
“The million dollars I promised to find you.”
“You didn’t give that away to whoever tipped you off?”
He shakes his head. “The deal was more than just a photo. And he got demanding. Asking for more if I wanted a current location. For half of it before he even showed us the image. He got nothing.”
“He?”
Troy holds my gaze. “The money is yours. My people will figure out how to handle the hockey player affair—”
“How long have you been following me?”
“Not long. We found out everything we needed to in the last forty-eight hours. Now we have two options. We can go the route where we tell the media you got cold feet and came to your senses. Or we can deny—”
“I pick option number three. The wedding is off.”
He presses his lips together. “I’ll take you back there myself—on a private jet.”
I scoff. “What, at the end of my term as your wife?”
He smirks. “You’re cute.” He crosses to me with caution. “Penelope.”
“Pepper,” I grit.
“Fine. Pepper. A million dollars can go a long way. Much longer than a woman from a small town who tricked a politician into a wedding she never intended to follow through with and left him for her next target. A hockey player. Think about the publicity Chase, the King, Reeves will have then.”
“Don’t bring him into this,” I snap.
“I wouldn’t. The people would. After they hear my side of the story.”
If you’re caught, I’m caught. And you’re not bringing me down with you.
Chase’s words echo in my head, and my chest tightens. I start to feel the walls closing in on me. This is what he meant. And I’ve been a selfish idiot letting him put his own reputation at stake for me. So selfish that I blamed him for abandoning me.
I’m no different than the girl I was in high school. The one who insulted Charlie when she tried out for cheerleading. The one who shunned away anyone trying to offer me kindness because of my own insecurities.
I close my eyes and focus. I’ve spent years grieving the loss of my parents at the same time wondering if and where they are in the world. Why they left me. Why my mother would leave me.
I think about Charlie and her mother. Grateful she still has her. Knowing I could give them more of that bond I’ll never get to have. I could fix everything. My mistakes, her financial burden, save Chase.
I wonder if he’ll wait for me.
I close my eyes, fighting tears. “I have conditions.”
“How many?” Troy asks, being the smart negotiator he is.
“Three.”
“Name them.”
“Who sent you the photo?”
He twists on his heel with his hands in his pockets like he’s discussing a business transaction. “A guy who claimed he’d know you anywhere. No matter what color your hair was. A…Beau Hamilton.”
I scoff. Hell, I’d marry Troy right now just for denying him the payout.
“The money. You would just give it to me?”
He shrugs. “Might as well.”
“Then I’ll accept a third of it. But not for me. You’ll make it out to my friend, Charlotte.”
He lifts a brow then frowns. “Why a third?”
“That’s number three. It would only be fair since we’ll revise our contract to one year.”
He huffs a breath and twists, pacing the space, his shoes clicking the hard wood. “I seem to have taught you well.”
“Do we have a deal?”
He holds out his hand, and I take it. With one firm shake, Troy pulls me against him and crashes his lips on mine before I push him off me and wipe my lips.
“Worth a try,” he says and walks to the door. “I’ll have the new contract drawn up this afternoon and get the wedding date set for next week.”