Page 65 of Heartless Sinner

She holds me tighter and I realize I'm shaking.

"Oh, sweetie," she whispers against my ear and we pull apart. “Are you okay?”

“I’m okay. I’m just… drained.”

“Of course.” She releases a sigh and looks me over with concern. I know why. I’ve lost a lot of weight, and I do look drained. It’s from all the work. “Look at you.”

“I know, but here’s hoping for better.”

She nods. “Let’s talk.” She gazes around the sunroom in a daze, but I know she’s thinking about more than just the room. “I want to hear the full story about how we’ve come to be here in the Hamptons. I mean, this place is... it’s like a billionaire's bachelor pad had a baby withArchitectural Digest."

I find myself laughing, and it feels great. "That's one way to put it."

Lucy arches a perfect brow. "You have one hell of a lot of explaining to do.”

“I know. Come sit.”

I usher her to the little wicker table and chairs where the food is set up. It feels so strange to be the one receiving food and not serving it.

We sit and Lucy leans forward, gazing at me eager to hear the rest of the story.

"Please tell me you didn’t sell yourself to the devil to pay off the debts?”

“I can’t tell you that.”

Her eyes snap wide. “What did you do?”

“Micah and I agree to get married in two weeks. I have to sign a contract ,and he’ll give me a million dollars if I stay married to him for a year. I get half now and half at the end. And as you know, he also paid Anton.”

Her already pale skin turns a deadly shade of alabaster. “He offered you what?”

“The offer of a lifetime.”

She stares back at me, her eyes still saucer wide. “I… I want to tell you to be careful because Micah Delarosa is in the mafia, but I’d be a fool to disagree with you. This is an offer of a lifetime.”

My body and soul feel less tense for having her support. “I’m really glad you think so because the situation I just left was so bad.”

“I know it was. Anton doesn’t fail to surprise me. And Johhny, too. Have you heard from him?”

“Nothing.” I shake my head and try to ignore the twist of truth coiling through my stomach. “He left us to die, Lucy.”

“I’m so sorry. Sorry feels like it’s not enough, but it’s all I can offer, and my support.”

“That’s so much more than I could ask for.”

She reaches across and gives my hand a gentle squeeze. “I will always be here for you.”

“And me for you.” I chuckle.

Seriousness returns to her eyes. “Scarlett, are you safe here? Are you safe with Micah? He seems to be really fascinated with you, and I like that, but how safe is it?”

A chill slithers down my spine and settles in the pit of my gut. I asked myself the same thing on the flight here. I didn’t come up with a winning answer. “I think I’m safer with the devil I don’t know than the one I do.”

She gives me a small smile. “I guess it looks that way. Just be careful. You seem fascinated with him, too. I’ve never known you to have a one-night stand. Plus, you’re marrying him.”

The truth of her words weighs me down. I think of the way Micah looked at me at the airport, like I was something he'd finally caught after a long chase. Like I was his.

“I know to be careful.”

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