Chapters (66)
- Cover
- Dedication
- Keep Reading
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Fifty-Two
- Fifty-Three
- Fifty-Four
- Fifty-Five
- Fifty-Six
- Fifty-Seven
- Fifty-Eight
- Fifty-Nine
- Sneak Peek
- Find Me
- Books by Mary Catherine Gebhard
- Acknowledgments
All day I’d cleaned up the mess Abigail had left behind, reassuring board members with my grandfather, keeping our stock from plummeting. All the while my grandfather’s voice had been in my ear, Thank fuck for the du Lacs.
My mother followed me to her favorite room, the sunroom, just as my grandfather answered the call.
“I’m out. Wedding is off.”
Forty-Six
GRAY
Silence followed my proclamation.
Then Grandpa exploded. “It hasn’t even been a day since your sister pulled this shit!”
“This joke was unfunny when Abigail tried it; it is even less funny from your lips,” Mother hissed.
“Do you know what happens if you refuse to marry Lottie?” My grandfather’s yell was so loud it crackled through the speakers.
“Crowne Industries will be fine,” I said. “This isn’t like when Father died. We aren’t on the verge of collapse. Our stock is fine. We don’t need to keep fucking marrying people.”
Grandfather was a greedy fucking asshole, is the truth.
My mother scrambled up from her chaise, wrestling the phone from my hands.
“He’s joking,” she said with a smile.
“I’m not joking.”
Mom pounded the mute button, breathing fire through her nostrils. “You saw what happened with Abigail. He will cut you out. He will give all of your birthright to the bastards.”
“I don’t give a shit.”
“You promised to me on your father’s deathbed you wouldn’t let anything happen to this family.”
“I was seven.”
“Do you know how much damn damage control we had to do after Abigail’s rushed engagement fell through?” My grandfather yelled through the speaker. “It’s sloppy. Fucking sloppy.”
Of course I knew.
Damage to his reputation. Damage in the public eye. Suddenly the Crowne was a little rusty.
It was a moment before my grandfather spoke. When he did his voice was calm, cold. “I don’t want to rush a marriage, but I will.”
“You’ll break Lottie’s heart,” my mother tried. “You’ll break my heart. And you will break her heart. You can’t have it, Grayson. You would ruin this family for your selfish desires.”
My mom placed her palm on my cheek, eyes warm in the way I knew meant her next words would be about her desires.
Her wants.
“You should have the marriage of the century, Grayson,” she said. “You’re a king.”
I pulled away and stabbed the button again to unmute the phone.
“I will happily continue my role in this family, but I’m not marrying her. Your greed will destroy our family faster than ending any fucking marriage.”
I ended the call and left the room, hearing my mother scrambling to smooth things with Grandfather.
Time to get my fucking girl.
STORY