Page 32 of Falling for the Forward

“Obviously.” She shrugs, her tone icy. “Then, when the company didn’t do well, he left the country and now I’m responsible for all the debt.”

I arch my brows, surprised a woman as savvy as Suki ended up in this situation.

“You should’ve told me.”

She glares at me. “Did you tell me every secret from your past? Every mistake you’ve ever made?”

“No, but I’m...I guess, for lack of a better word, I’m theemployerin this relationship. The one writing the check, not the one cashing it. I’m the one under constant public scrutiny because of my job. And if the company sold watches or something, it would be no big deal.”

“Do you want out?”

I furrow my brow, confused. “Out of what?”

She holds up her hand and points at her ring. “This. You’re theemployer, so are you firing me?”

“Look, I didn’t mean it like that.”

“If you want out, it’s fine.”

That’s the last fucking thing I need. A quickie wedding followed by a quickie divorce or annulment less than a week late won’t help the custody case.

“No, I don’t want out. But we need to talk about this and anything else that could bite us in the ass. You’re living under a spotlight now.”

She nods, looking angry but also defeated.

“Is the company still open?”

“No. I never had anything to do with running it. When he left, I had to change the business address to my apartment so I could pay the bills and receive the inventory. I have a storage unit where I keep it all.”

“How much debt do you have?”

She narrows her eyes. “That’s none of your business. I’m current on the payments. That’s all you need to know.”

“Is there anything else that could hurt us if it came out? Like him selling his shit to minors or getting arrested?”

“Not that I know of, but he’s a man, so he was probably hiding and lying more than I ever knew about.”

Wow. Bitter, party of one. Suki seems to have decided to blame my entire gender for what her douchebag ex did.

I unbutton my dress shirt, suddenly tired. I just want to eat and go to bed. The rest of this conversation can wait.

“Are we done?” she asks, her tone curt.

“Yeah.”

She scoops Darling up from the floor and walks away without another word.

I eat my food in silence, wishing I’d gone for the postgame snack I really wanted. Lucky Charms cereal.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Suki

“Aunt Rosie,this is Darling. Isn’t he handsome?”

Hallie walks him into the kitchen on his leash, and he immediately heads for the pantry, tugging the leash taut.

“He’s the handsomest pig I’ve ever seen,” Rosie says. “I can’t wait to get to know him better.”

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