Tempting the Crown (The Crown 1)

“Oh I wouldn’t pretend. How about you pay me back for the nice life you have now?”

She felt her jaw drop. “Pay you?” She looked around the corner to make sure no one could hear her. “You had me carted off in the back of someone’s trunk, Cal. You can’t honestly think I owe you anything. I’m hanging up now.” She wasn’t about to tell him she had wagered and won for her freedom.

“I wouldn’t do that, princess,” he taunted. “Your boyfriends might not be too happy if I told them about what you used to do.”

The hair prickled on the back of her neck. “Cal,” she hissed. “Why can’t you leave me alone? You paid your debt. Move on.” She felt the panic rising. She could almost taste it in her mouth.

He chuckled. “So I struck a nerve? Well, why don’t you make a few payments if you want me to keep your secret?”

“That’s blackmail.”

“You can call it whatever you want. I want the money. You aren’t so innocent, are you? You’ve done your own things for money, cuz.”

“How much?” she whispered. “What will it take to make you go away?”

“See? I knew family was supposed to stick together.”

“How much, Cal?” she insisted. She wanted to throw up.

He paused. “Why don’t you make a few payments and I’ll let you know.”

She squeezed her eyes tightly as the elevator finally arrived. A woman scrambled off.

“I wouldn’t get on there if I were you. I got stuck on the ninth floor.” The woman was flustered.

“Thanks.” Abby smiled meekly. “I’ll take the other one.” It must be why everything was running so slowly.

“Princess?” Cal was still on the phone.

“I’m at work. I’ll call you later. Don’t do anything, Cal. Swear to me you won’t. I’ll get your money. Just don’t say anything to anyone.”

“It’s our little secret. Always has been. Unless you don’t come up with the cash. Then it will be everyone’s secret.”

Abby stepped on to the next elevator. Cal held her future in his hands. And if there was one thing she knew, it was not to trust him for a single second. There was nothing steady or honest about him. He was filled with one thing only—greed.

She leaned into the elevator. This was all going to fall apart. It would crumble at her feet.

31

Abby

Trying to sit through a meeting and share her success in Vegas, should have made Abby feel triumphant, but instead she felt sick. All she heard was the sneer in Cal’s voice, echoing in her head. It was like a broken record and she couldn’t pick up the needle. Why did he have to ruin everything? Steal the only happiness she’d ever known? She felt the pit of hatred harden. It was money—it always came back to money.

How was she going to get through this?

“Abby?” Bruce waited at the other end of the conference table.

“Yes?”

“You were going to lay out how we should integrate your design into the website? Do you have that for us?”

She blinked. “Yes. Right. Exactly.”

She scrambled through her notes, looking for the file on the web design. It wasn’t her area of expertise, but she knew how she wanted it to look and feel when donors or families clicked to research the foundation. It would be the main basis for information. It had to be perfect.

“Bruce, I’d like to consult with the web designer and then we could work through that at the next meeting.”

“But we need that for the celebrity endorsement page. That should come up first, don’t you think?” he asked.