Cruel Money (Cruel 1)

“Fuck,” Lewis growled. “Natalie…I…”

“Get me out of here.”

“Natalie, maybe just talk to him?”

“Please,” I asked with wide eyes.

“God,” Katherine said, putting her hand on my shoulder. “I’m so sorry. I thought his meet-up with her last week had ended things. I thought that’s why you were finally together.”

My head snapped to the side so fast that I got a crick in my neck. “That was who he met with last week? When he stayed in the city all night?”

Katherine opened and closed her mouth. Her eyes were full of sympathy. “I’m sorry. You didn’t know that?”

I wanted to throw up. That tequila shot and champagne felt like fire in my throat. And at any second, I might hurl. I was such a fucking idiot. Why hadn’t I seen it before? Because he’d said he was sorry and showed me the stars? Dangled a Tiffany’s bracelet in front of my face?

Of course he was covering something up. Fucking fuck, fuck. I felt so stupid.

“Now, Lewis, will you get me out of here? You offered to let me stay at your place once. Will you do it again?” I pleaded. I wouldn’t cry. Not here. Not in front of all of these people. Not when Penn was doing whatever the hell he wanted with his ex-girlfriend.

“Okay,” Lewis said finally with a sigh. “Okay, I’ll take you.”

I nodded, unable to get the words out, and followed him through a back exit and out of the club.

Penn

29

I grasped Emily by her shoulders and shoved her away from me.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” I asked.

I couldn’t believe she’d fucking kissed me. What the fuck was she thinking?

“Kissing you,” she said, batting her long lashes. “Haven’t you missed me?”

“No!” I snapped. “What the fuck would give you that idea? I thought I’d made myself perfectly clear when I was in the city last week. We’re through. We’ve been through for a long time. And I’m not going to deal with any more of your bullshit.”

“Wait, what?” Emily asked. Her eyes so dark, almost black, turned from seduction to confusion. “Katherine called and invited me to her party. She said that you’d had a change of heart.”

I seethed at that comment. This fucking bet was ruining everything. I needed to end it. I needed to cut Katherine to ribbons and make her see reason. This whole thing was stupid. And bringing in Emily? That was low, even for her.

“I have no fucking clue where she got that delusion. But I don’t want this or you.”

“Fine,” she said, squaring off with me, as she so often had. It was something I’d admired about her, and now, it just drove me crazy. “Say what you want.”

“You should go, Emily.”

“You don’t control me, Penn Kensington,” she cried. She yanked her arm away from me.

“There’s no reason for you to be here anymore.”

“This is the biggest event in the city. I’m sure I can find someone to entertain me.”

“Yes, I’m sure there are plenty of men here you’ve already entertained,” I said dryly. “Most of them while we were dating.”

“I cannot believe I thought of giving you another chance,” she yelled at me. “You will never get over that.”

“No, I won’t,” I said evenly. My eyes were dark and dangerous.

I needed to get away from her. If she wasn’t going to leave, then I could have one of the security guards escort her out or something.

“Excuse me,” I said, waving one of the guards over.

“What are you doing?” she gasped.

“Katherine Van Pelt requested that this woman be removed from the premises. She came in on a fake name and wasn’t invited,” I said harshly.

“Yes, sir.”

“Penn!” Emily shrieked.

I shrugged and turned my back on her. Now to deal with Katherine Van Pelt, who had started this whole mess.

I rushed back to the booth Katherine had reserved for her event and found it surprisingly half-full of strangers. It looked like Camden, Court, and Jane had gone to the back room. Probably to do cocaine or whatever latest thing Court was into. Rowe and Jessica Rabbit were making out in a corner. Katherine was entertaining a posse of her minions. But no Natalie. No Lewis.

What the hell?

I strode up to Katherine and whirled her in place. “Why would you invite Emily here?”

A slow, dangerous smile spread on her face. “Oh dear Lord…is Emily here?”

“Don’t bullshit me, Ren. It’s me after all. She told me that you sent her here. Why?” Then I looked around again, and it dawned on me. “Where’s Natalie?”

“She might have seen you and Emily kissing.”

“We weren’t kissing,” I ground out.

“Sure looked like it from our angle.” Her smile was triumphant.

“Where. Is. She?” I snarled at her.

I didn’t care that I was playing into her hand. That this was exactly what she wanted. She’d engineered this entire thing, and I’d walked right into it like an idiot. I should have known better.