HIS DOE, HIS DAMNATION (An Erotic Billionaire Romance) novel Chapter 91

Meadow’s POV:

My breath stuttered and my eyelids fluttered. I had to physically clutch my chest through my top because his words had cut me deeply.

‘Most marriages are jokes,‘ he’d said. Like ours. Like my marriage to Alaric. A contract, his need to feel touch, my need to be ruined. It wasn’t real. None of it was.

Yvonne scowled, curling her fists on the table. “I’m going to have a talk with his manager,” she gritted out, but before she could rise to her feet, I stopped her.

“Don’t,” I muttered, shaking my head. “It’s not worth it.”

‘He didn’t lie,’ I almost added.

Yvonne watched me for a moment with her head tilted, almost like she was trying to figure something out. And then she asked out of nowhere: “Is your marriage a joke, Meadow?”

My jaw ticked. “Now why on earth would you ask me that?”

She hesitated before she answered. “I didn’t mean it like that. But like you said, I lied to you, and you wish I gave you a heads up. But if I had given you one, would you have left him, Meadow?” Her gaze shifted to the ring on my finger. “Because I see that ring, and if you were anyone else, I’d say you married him for his money, but your father is a goddamn billionaire-”

“Was,” I cut in coldly. “He was one. Not anymore. Now he’s just a prisoner in a cell living the rest of his days there as punishment for his sins.” My voice cracked at the end.

I didn’t like to talk about my father. I didn’t like talking about anyone in my family, really. But I hadn’t spoken to my father in nearly twelve years–if not longer.

And I had no interest in doing that anytime soon. Or ever. But it was easier to make Yvonne believe that I was with Alaric for his money, because after my father was convicted, his bank accounts were frozen and emptied because he had embezzled most of it.

All of it, even. His entire lifestyle was a lie.

“So what?” Yvonne scoffed. “You married Alaric for his money? I already told you still have a trust fund.”

“And I don’t want it. I don’t want any of Clint’s dirty money.

Both of us had forgotten about our drinks, but now, Yvonne picked hers up, taking a small sip of it. I didn’t touch mine.

“So what? You think Alaric’s money is clean?”

“Yes,” I answered confidently. I didn’t know much about him, but I knew he had integrity, and I was certain that he hadn’t acquired his money illegally. Hell, he grew up with money. I could tell by the way Ingrid behaved.

‘Doesn’t mean his father was clean, though, does it?’ a voice in my mind asked.

I swallowed, shaking my head to clear my thoughts as my eyes met Yvonne’s brown, worried ones–if she really was worried, that is.

Yvonne was silent. I ran a hand through my hair, already getting frustrated. “Why are you even so concerned about this, Yvonne? Do you want Alaric? Is that it? Is that why you want me to leave him so badly?”

I noticed the way her right eye twitched every time I called her Yvonne… and that was exactly why I continued to call her that.

“God, no,” she replied, grabbing my hand across the table. I wanted to pull away, but I didn’t. “Meadow, I just want what’s best for you, okay? You had just gone through a break up and you jumped into another—”

“Yeah, and guess the reason why we broke up.”

I hadn’t outrightly told Yvonne what Juniper did, but I did tell her the night of the party that my sister was the reason.

Yvonne swallowed. “About that… why didn’t you tell me that Juni was locked up in a psychiatric facility?”

All the breath was knocked out of my lungs as my eyes grew slightly wide. There’s no way she would’ve known unless… unless she had already met with Juniper.

It had already been about a week since she was released, and I still hadn’t heard from her.

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