A Billionaire for Christmas

“Raji wouldn’t give an interview like this,” he said, muttering more to himself than anyone else.

The article was damning, however. The photoshopped cover image related to a long section about a supposed love triangle between Xan, Georgie, and Peyton.

Shit. It even mentioned Tanglewood.

In the article, the section entitled Shocking Killer Valentine Secrets! Sex! Drugs! went on to detail Xan’s addiction to steroids to reduce the inflammation in his throat so he could keep up with the insane touring schedule. It specifically tattled about the thousands of Polaroids glued to the underside of the stage, illustrating the degrading things young women would do with roadies to get backstage.

Peyton swallowed hard.

He had told Raji those things. Damn it, had she taken notes?

Another section detailed allegations of drug abuse in the most garish terms: heroin addiction, casual and rampant drug use by nearly all the band members, Jonas the band manager delivering illegal drugs to Rade, Grayson, Tryp, and Cadell, the steroids injected into Xan Valentine’s throat by unqualified medics, smuggling drugs over international and state borders, drug dealers meeting the band at the hotels as soon as they checked in, and worse.

It even mentioned Georgie’s miscarriage several years earlier.

Dammit.

Peyton was sure he had told Raji all of those things over the years they had been together. He had still been processing them, and he had been reassuring her that he wasn’t part of it.

Maybe he shouldn’t have divulged any of that to anyone.

He had trusted her, and it was inconceivable to him that he had been wrong about her.

The last part of the article included more damning details about the heartless Peyton Cabot, how he was still pining after Georgie Johnson so much that he had abandoned his pregnant girlfriend, Raji Kannan.

The picture of Raji showed her pregnant belly bulging out her white doctor’s coat. Her arms were crossed over her chest as she smiled for the camera.

It sounded like it could have been written by a jilted lover.

No.

Raji wouldn’t.

Andy, the tour doctor and Cadell Glynn’s wife, ran into his dressing room door. She wore a long sweater and a baby carrier holding her daughter, Priya, whom she’d had with Cadell only a few months before. “Georgie? I got your text. What is the problem?”

Peyton read faster, trying to find out what the article said, but his eyes kept returning to that picture of Raji, heavy with child. He did the math, and the baby was indeed due any time now.

Their baby might already have been born.

Damn it, his emails, phone calls, and texts seemed so inadequate now. Peyton should have shown up on Raji’s doorstep. He should have broken down her door and demanded that she talk to him.

He should have begged her on his knees to marry him.

He should have been there for her.

“We can’t let this stay out there,” Xan emphatically said to Georgie.

He wasn’t yelling at her, of course. King Arthur never yelled at Guinevere.

The Queen’s Knight, Sir Peyton, would have had to intervene.

Xan told her, “This is a smear campaign. This could ruin Killer Valentine. We have to hit back, hard.”

Peyton stood. “What do you mean, hit back?”

Xan said, “This woman, this Raji Kannan—”

“Raji?” Andy shrieked. “What about Raji?”

“—has sold her smear story to this magazine,” Xan said, poking at the magazine in Peyton’s hand. “We must show that it is lies, that she is a liar. We will have Jonas arrange interviews to deny everything. We will dig up dirt on her and smear her back so that no one believes her.”

Peyton held the magazine in his hands. “I don’t believe it.”

“It’s shocking, oui-oui, but we must believe it and prepare ourselves to destroy her. She thought she could get famous by telling all our secrets and making up these lies. We’ll make her famous for all the wrong reasons. By the time we’re done with her, no self-respecting hospital will have such a notorious liar on their staff.”

“You can’t do that,” Peyton said. Jesus, all those years that Raji had put into medical school and her residency would be wasted.

Andy was holding her hand over her mouth, tears budding in her eyes.

“Raji wouldn’t do this.” Peyton put as much conviction into his words as he could, even though he could feel doubt drawing his eyebrows together.

“Did you tell her these things?” Xan demanded.

“Yes,” Peyton admitted. “Everything.”

“And they have these pictures of her smiling for the camera, and they cite her as a source, and the whole article is about you, you, you. Their source was fixated on you. It is Raji, and we will destroy her.”

“Raji would never do this. She would never try to hurt me or us. She’s not like that.” Peyton looked at Andy. “Do you think she would?”

Xan whirled and glared at Andy.

Andy’s dark eyes widened on her face. “I—I don’t know. I don’t think so. She never mentioned even being in a relationship with Peyton to me. She hasn’t returned my calls for a while, just texts saying that she’s fine. She didn’t even tell me she was pregnant. Beth didn’t mention it, either.”