Page 10 of A Billionaire's Secret

I froze.

“Are you sure? How do you know?” I quizzed him.

“She’s exhibiting all the symptoms— restlessness, agitation, profuse sweating,”

“But she was fine yesterday—” I remembered Victoria’s test ride.

“She must have still been under the influence. Those things start to show once the drug wears off. Chris, word of advice, no one can know about this, or you’ll be in deep shit.”

“Doc, I’ll get to the bottom of it. Can I trust you to keep it between us?” I ran my fingers through my hair and stared at Diana, who was scrolling through her phone obliviously.

“Sure, Chris. You owe me one, though.” He joked and hung up.

I strolled back inside the lunch spot, my brain pulsating with anger and disappointment. I hoped my worst fear wasn’t true, but if Diana were in on this, she’d have to bear the consequences. And Victoria—she could never know about this.

5

Victoria

“Vicky,areyougoingto the club this morning? You’re running late.” My younger sister cracked the door to my room and informed me.

“Shit,” I jumped up and rubbed my forehead. “Thanks, Lizzie. I can still make it.”

I almost tripped on my way to the shower, but managed to take a really quick one, threw on the first tights and a t-shirt I found, grabbed a stale bagel from the kitchen, yelled ‘See ya’ to whoever wanted to hear it, and jumped in my father’s pickup truck.

At twenty-six years old, I felt like a total failure. Living in my parents’ house, with nothing to show for myself but depleted bank accounts and broken dreams. And now—a one-night stand with a man who was my opposite in every way but one—he took me to ecstasy faster than anyone I’d ever dated.

Maybe it was because he was twenty years older than me, and his experience and dedication to pleasure clearly showed in the bedroom. Or perhaps it was the fact that I had only dated immature men who couldn’t spell ‘commitment’ to save their life, and I could now tell the difference. Either way, flashbacks of last night pulsated in my core and illuminated my tired eyes on the drive to Barrington Downs.

But once I got there, I choked up at the thought of running into him. Or his daughter. A few hours of pleasure last night would manifest as dreadful discomfort every time I ran into them from now on.

I strolled toward the entrance of the stables and peeked around every corner, hoping not to see any members of the Forbes family. When the coast was clear, I hurried my steps to Sahara’s stall, gave her a big hug, and groomed her silky mane until my nerves calmed down.

I took a deep breath and walked Sahara to the ring. At least when I rode her, no one would come near me or dare to interrupt me. She’d be my escape plan for the foreseeable future.

“Victoria,” I heard someone call me, demolishing my dreams of avoidance.

“Hey Tony,” I said, relieved that it was only my trainer. “I was going to do a few rounds and move on to the jumps.”

“Yea, sounds good! Do your thing. I need to deal with a newbie today, so I’ll be here if you need me.” Tony informed me and walked away.

I rode Sahara until sweat beads dripped from my forehead and into my eyes. I instructed her to a slow gallop and jumped off her. We both needed a break, so I brought her to her stall and grabbed a bottle of cold water from the fridge.

I let the cold liquid gush down my scorched throat. But then my face caught fire. Christian stood a few feet away, standing tall, staring right at me with his playful eyes, ruffled hair, and irresistible smile. My eyes widened the moment they landed on his, but I quickly looked away. Maybe he’ll think I didn’t see him.

I swallowed my last sip, turned around, and walked off with the determination of a marathon runner approaching the finish line.

Well, that was a mature reaction.

I wished nothing more but to hide away in the changing rooms. Better yet, maybe I’d lock myself in a bathroom stall for the rest of the day. I walked into the changing rooms with this master plan in mind, but it came crashing down at the sight of Diana in there. I was sure now this whole family was put on Earth to haunt me.

I acknowledged her by briefly nodding her way and sped up my step toward the first available bathroom stall.

“Hi, Vitoria!” She squealed joyfully.

I didn’t respond. For one, I still despised her for stealing the win from under me. Second, I still believed her horse showed a very suspicious, sudden advantage, much too fast. Third, I was humiliated that I had slept with her father just a few hours ago. And if that wasn’t enough, I had also ridden her horse without her permission.

I wished the bathroom floor would open and help me disappear into another dimension where I’d never met her or her silver fox of a father. But it didn’t. And I had to face her and him, sooner or later.

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