Page 47 of A Billionaire's Secret

I had but a few hours to make an important decision that could possibly tarnish my life forever. Would I accept Diana’s apology and forever hold my peace for the crime she had committed, choosing to go against all my morals as an athlete and a human? Or would I cut my ties with Diana and her father and tell the truth to whoever wanted to hear it?

The two options threw punches at each other in my mind, causing throbbing pain in my temples. The beating of the rain against my window numbed every other sound around me until I drifted off to sleep.

“Vicky,” my sister’s urgent and persistent voice echoed through my dream. “I think Christian’s driver is here. Says you were expecting him.”

“Crap,” I jumped in my bead and scratched my head. “How long have I been out for? Please tell him I’ll be down in ten.”

Lizzie watched wide-eyed as I stripped my clothes off on the way to the shower and jumped in with the water still cold. Ten minutes later, with my hair still wet and wearing a white dress that I pulled out of the closet without even looking, I sat behind Daniel in Christian’s Range Rover.

I’ve made my decision.

22

Christian

“Edward,”Ianxiouslyyelledout from my study the moment Victoria hung up the phone. “How fast can you have a caterer organize a candle-lit dinner for two on the loan? Sorry, let me paraphrase—I need it done by six-thirty tonight.”

Edward appeared at my door by the time I had finished the sentence, staring hopelessly at his watch that read two-thirty.

“Um, I will do what I can, but the storm needs to pass first,” he stuttered and hurried away.

I wondered what Diana had said to make Victoria call me out of the blue, so I looked for her around the house.

“Diana, is now a good time to let me know what you had to do at Barrington’s,” I grilled her as soon as I located her on the back porch.

“Relax, Dad. Come watch the rain with me,” she patted the seat next to her.

I agreed, sat down, and stared at her intently. “Well?”

“I wanted to talk to Victoria about everything,” she turned to look at me. “I apologized and returned her daisy charm.”

“And you were cordial?” My brows furrowed, and my heart sunk at the thought of my daughter being rude to Victoria.

“Yes, Dad,” she rolled her eyes. “I’m not an idiot. I wanted to clear the air and make sure she knows that I support you and her being together.”

I stared at her in disbelief. “Diana, this means the world to me,” I choked up, unable to disguise my happiness.

“Oh, and nice horse you bought her,” she winked at me. “I just wish you had told me so I didn’t look like a fool when I asked her about it.”

“It all happened so quickly, and you and we had to deal with other, more important things, right?” I defended myself. “And honestly, I wasn’t even sure she’d accept the gift.”

“Well, Dad, now it’s up to you to make it work,” she declared and got up to leave.

“I hope I can. She’s coming over for dinner tonight,” I informed Diana.

“Good!” she exclaimed and walked away, leaving me alone on the porch under clearing skies, a subtle smile forming on my face and a full heart beating in my chest.

“By the way, I’m going back to Nashville. I think I’m done here now.” Diana’s voice echoed in the distance.

***

Victoria walked through the main door, led by Edward, and my insides fluttered as if I was seeing her for the first time. Her hair flowed freely in damp waves over a loose white summer dress that covered her thighs halfway. The anatomically perfect muscles on her legs perked up in response to the pressure of her feet in high heels.

“You look like a vision,” I leaned in and kissed her on the cheek.

“Thank you.” She blushed. “We match again.”

I looked down at my clothes and confirmed. I rarely wore light colors, but tonight, I had chosen loose-fitting off-white linen pants and a matching shirt to set a light mood amidst the gloomy, rainy day.

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