Page 46 of Love & Betrayal

Taken back, I swallowed my shock. Had Vaughn mentioned Chelsey to her, or could Claire tell I had feelings for Giselle? My heartrate kicked up a notch, then I remembered that Claire had overheard parts of my conversation with Vaughn.

“I know it will, Bonnie.” I chuckled and hugged her. Claire and I had become close when she and Vaughn were sneaking around with each other. I was the person that caught them together. At first, I’d given Vaughn shit and had confronted Claire about messing with Vaughn’s head—both of them. That girl didn’t even hesitate to put me in my place. She had the same fire as her sister. From that moment on, I liked her. Claire was exactly what Vaughn had needed. And me, too. I’d gained a funny, sharp, amazing friend.

Claire bounced into the living room as Vaughn, Pierce, and I watched.

“Hey, sis,” Claire said, tugging on her sister’s ponytail as if she were the younger one. “I hate to interrupt, but I wanted to introduce myself. I’m Claire, and I’m a huge fan, so after you talk whatever business you all have, I would love to hang out for a few minutes.” Claire paused, then wiggled her brows. “I have a dance studio in the house.”

I couldn’t see Giselle’s expression, but her laugh caught my attention. I realized it was forced, but if anyone could bring her out of a shell, it was Claire and Sutton. Unable to hear Giselle’s muted response, I watched as Claire smiled, then left the living room.

“Let’s get started,” Pierce said, taking the lead.

Vaughn and I followed him and joined the women. Sutton sat next to Giselle, and Pierce and Vaughn each grabbed a recliner. I stood behind Pierce so I could see Giselle and hopefully hide my feelings from him. If I accidentally gave anything away, Sutton would be more forgiving than her husband.

She glanced at me, fear practically bleeding through her pores. I lifted my chin. “You’re in good company, Giselle.”

She nodded, her hands fidgeting in her lap, then took a slow, deep breath. I braced myself for what I was about to hear. But nothing could have prepared me for what she was about to say.

30

Zayne

“Are you ready?” Sutton asked, her tone kind. She reached over, took Giselle’s hand in hers, and gave it a gentle squeeze.

Giselle bit her lip, then glanced at everyone. “Donovan is my adopted brother, as Zayne has probably told you. My parents love him as much as they do me, and in their opinion, he can do no wrong. I would have gone to them and asked for help, but Donovan is sneaky, and from the very beginning, he figured out what to threaten me with in order to keep his secrets.” Giselle cleared her throat.

“Take your time,” Pierce said, leaning back in the chair and propping his ankle on the opposite knee.

I knew Pierce well enough to understand that he was trying not to scare Giselle, but he was ready to urge her forward.

“When I turned twelve, Donovan would break into my bedroom at night and rape me. At first it was once a month, then once a week. Eventually it was almost every evening after our parents were asleep.”

“And your parents weren’t aware that he was hurting you?” Sutton asked.

“No. Donovan said he would harm my mom if I told anyone. I was only twelve, and a very sheltered kid. Not only was he bigger than Mom and me, but he was manipulative, and so convincing that it was easy to believe him.” She shook her head. “I should have never listened to him, but the fear of losing my mother when I could have protected her … it was too much.”

“You were a child, that makes sense,” Sutton responded.

I glanced at Vaughn, his jaw tight, but he remained quiet and allowed Sutton to continue to take the lead.

“As he got older, his tastes in the bedroom grew rougher. When I was accepted into the dance company, I thought I would be free of him, but the moment he turned eighteen, he joined me in France. My mother and father visited often, but they still had no idea what was happening. It took a lot of high-quality theatre makeup to cover the bruises when I attended class. After the first year, Donovan became good friends with one of the power players of the ballet world. His name was Ander Pierre. My ex-husband.”

My eyes briefly narrowed, attempting to string the pieces together.

“It was then that I was selected as the prima ballerina. What I didn’t know at the time was that Donovan had …” Giselle gulped.

Afraid she might start puking again, I walked over to the couch, grabbed her 7UP from the end table, and handed it to her. I returned to stand behind Pierce, hoping to hide any uncontrolled emotions that could reveal themselves in my expressions.

She took a few swallows. “Thank you.

“There’s no other way to say it, but Donovan sold me to Ander. As long as I submitted to Ander and his sick sexual fantasies, I would remain the prima ballerina of the company.”

I contained my growl and gripped the back of Pierce’s recliner.

“There was an exchange of money, or did he trade you?” Sutton had begun scribbling notes once Giselle spoke. “And Giselle, even though I need to ask questions, please know that in no way do I support Donovan or Ander in anyway. Don’t think that I’m not furious with how these men treated you. I just have to keep my business brain intact, then take out my frustrations and beat up Pierce when we get home.” She offered Giselle a grim smile. “I guess I better explain that. We’re both trained in martial arts and we spar. I win.”

The guys chuckled. Sutton was capable of kicking the shit out of all of us.

Giselle’s eyes widened, her attention darting to Pierce and back to Sutton. “You can beat him up? He’s a big guy!”

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