“I wish I could, but Ross did to Cricket what Rene did to you. He used her for her money. He never loved her. If she hadn’t gotten pregnant with Rene, he would have left her the minute his position was secure. They had a prenup, you know, except it wasn’t the same as the one you have with Rene.”
“How would you know?”
“When you married Rene, you got stock. He had to prove that the stock was secure in the case of a divorce. He had to show the family his prenup. I’m the legal adviser to much of the family, so I read it.”
Rene hadn’t mentioned that to her. She’d signed it, knowing all the logical reasons for Rene to protect himself, but knowing Charles had read it gave her a queasy feeling. It was nothing more than a legal document, but it seemed awfully personal in that moment.
“Like you, Cricket had a clause where Ross got no money from her if they didn’t stay married for a certain number of years. Ross got her pregnant and that was how he trapped her,” Charles said.
“I hardly think she was trapped.”
“Have you asked her? Ross and Cricket married within a few weeks of meeting each other. Ask old Louis if he thought he would lose his girl when all he was trying to do was help a friend out.”
“And how would you know all of this?”
“Because my mother slept with Ross for years,” he said between clenched teeth. “Because she was the one Ross truly loved. She married my father when it became clear Ross wasn’t going to do right by her.”
That had her stomach in a knot. She’d heard a lot of rumors before, but never anything like that. “Does Rene know?”
“There’s not much Rene doesn’t know about our family, and he loves to rub the rest of our noses in it. I know you think he’s kind and upright, but he’s his father’s son to the bone. He married you to secure his place at the head of the family. When he doesn’t need you, he’ll drop you very quickly because while you might give him what he needs now, he’ll want a moneyed wife later on.” Charles looked her up and down. “Although he might keep you as a sidepiece.”
“If you want me to slap you right here, say it again,” she said, her voice as cold as ice. “I will then tell anyone who asks what you said to me. Because if you think I’ll keep quiet to save face, you don’t understand who the bad guy is here.”
He had the good grace to flush. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have put it that way. I know you won’t believe me, but I am trying to help you.”
She managed not to laugh in his face. “You’re right. I don’t believe you. Not for a second.”
“Then let me make it clear to you. I will pay you a hundred thousand dollars to get an annulment before my aunt comes to town. Think about what you could do with that money. You could run a campaign for a better position. A smart girl like you can’t be happy being a small-town mayor. You have to be thinking bigger.”
“Your first mistake is to call me a girl when I am obviously a woman.” She had to choke back her anger because, despite what she’d said before, she didn’t want to cause a scene. Rene might know about his father’s affair, but the rest of the town didn’t, and she wasn’t going to give Charles a chance to make it public knowledge. “Your second is to assume that you know my marriage better than I do.”
“I know he hasn’t told you the truth about his parents,” he said evenly. “You’ve got an excellent poker face, Madam Mayor, but you didn’t know about Ross’s affair. That means Rene’s not truly confiding in you. You should ask him about it. See how he reacts.”
“Is this your plan? You’re going to spread nasty rumors around town?”
“It’s not a rumor. It’s the plain truth, and I expect you to stay silent about it. Rene made you one of us, and my family knows how to keep a secret. That’s the reason you hadn’t heard, but I wonder how close you really are to Rene if he’s not telling you our secrets. Or maybe he knows you won’t be one of us for long.” He stepped back. “I’ve got to go pick up my son. We’re going fishing this weekend. You think about what I said. That check is waiting for you. You should get something out of this besides heartache. I wish someone had offered my mother the same.”
She watched as he walked out.
There were a lot of reasons Rene might not tell her something so personal, the first being Charles was full of it and he was trying to drive a wedge between them. It could all be a lie.