Page 7 of Ashes of Sin

I don’t know why I bothered. She’s never spoken up for me before. Deep down, I was still hoping she would.

In private, she has explained how essential it is I do as my father tells me. That he knows what is best for our family and the future of Fox & Co.

“Who you marry is important, darling. Your grandparents worked hard to create the fortune that we enjoy, and your father continues to ensure the Fox name is held in high esteem,” Mom said.

My father inherited the nationwide accounting firm from my grandfather, and during the early 2000s, it began to thrive, becoming a Fortune 500 company. Our name is on skyscrapersin New York and on buildings in Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, and Orlando.

I’m good with numbers. I think I would’ve contributed far more by working in the business. If I was a boy, would they have educated me more?

It saddens me to think so, but I know I’m right.

I asked my father a few years ago, and he slapped me. I took it as a yes.

The bruise was visible for a week.

“You’re lucky you’re homeschooled. I wouldn’t want to explain that to anyone.” Dad growled as I held my palm against my cheek. “Never ask me that again.”

I didn’t need to.

I had my answer.

The teen years were the hardest. I barely socialized, and who I hung out with was closely monitored. I met Penny at ballet class, which I’d fought to attend when I was little.

I’d fortunately excelled at it, and when I overheard my mother saying to my father that the other moms were all talking about how talented I was, he muttered that I could keep going.

Penny and I hit it off immediately and each year got closer and closer. She was one of my only true friends. Her family is also wealthy, so I suppose my father approved of her.

Unlike me, she has an optimistic view of life.

She’s kept me sane more times than I can count.

“What if I don’t get access to money and end up stuck married to him forever?” I’d asked her, curling my feet under my bottom on the sofa.

Penny frowned. “That’s illegal. You can’t force someone to stay married to you.”

I had a feeling Pierce Sterling could.

The only benefit being that I would outlive him. By decades.

“Anyway, pretending I like him would involve sex. And...” I had swallowed down my revolt.

Even Penny had cringed.

“Just close your eyes and pretend you’re shopping or something.”

Dropping my head into my hands, I’d moaned. “It’s rape. I don’t want to marry him.”

That’s when she had hugged me.

“I wish I could do something.”

“Help me run away.” I’d lifted my face, pleading pathetically. “What about Chad’s place in the Hamptons? I could go there and hide for a few weeks.”

Chad was her cousin.

“I’m not sure...”

“Please ask him, Penny.” I’d begged.

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