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Butterflies flutter in my stomach, and his words feel like a promise. Asher Banks never breaks those. And as he moves inside me, claiming me completely, I realize I’ve never felt more alive,more seen, more loved. I’ve fallen in love with him completely and irrevocably, and there’s no going back. I don’t want to.
This is true love. I’ve been searching for it my entire life, and I’ve found it in him.
I was always the problem, not Asher. He’s always believed we were destined and was just waiting for me to finally wake up. My eyes are wide open.
27
ASHER
ONE WEEK LATER
Iglance at the clock in the corner of my computer screen, watching the minutes tick down.
Twenty minutes later, Josh Lustre enters the office I’m occupying while working at his headquarters. He carries a tablet in his hand, then slides it across the desk to me.
A Royal Wedding Is in the Works: The Diamond Princess and Her Prince.
He glares at me. “How did this happen? They’re moving too fast.”
I shrug, knowing this is a losing argument. It always is when it comes to Billie. After working this closely with him, I understand why she left. He’s okay in small doses, but in large ones? Annoying as hell.
“My job isn’t to stalk Billie Calloway. You know how I feel about her. She’sboring. You can domuch better,” I tell him.
“They cannot get married, Asher. They cannot! I will not allow this to happen!” he screams in my face.
I smile, understanding his frustration, but knowing this lie is a very large piece of a puzzle.
“Please sit,” I say calmly, and he does.
Once he’s settled down and is no longer having a toddler fit, I breathe out slowly. Somehow, I’ve become one of the few people who can calm him down when he’s having a meltdown like this. Always pathetic, consistently over Billie.
“Okay. Now listen to me. If she does marry the prince, she’ll acquire royal duties and no longer have time for Bellamore. That benefitsyoudirectly.”
“But if I lose her, I’ll lose her forever. I can’t bear it,” he says, his fist clenched.
The way he’s acting makes me want to bash his fucking face in. I want to shake him and ask him why he didn’t treasure her while he had her. What’s sad is, had he not cheated, she probably would have never left him. Even if she wasn’t in love, she was happy. Comfortable. They were comfortable.
“Then what?” I ask. “What will you do?”
“I have a plan,” he tells me. “One that will guarantee that palace will not approve of this marriage.”
My heart rate upticks slightly, but I remain calm. “Which includes?”
“Sex tapes,” he says. “Lotsof them.”
My nostrils slightly flare. “What are you talking about?”
He grins mischievously. “I used to secretly film us having sex in my house. Maybe a few of those videos should find their way onto the internet somehow. No way the palace would let a whore like her be a queen—not with her pussy and tits all over the web. They want a princess, not Billie Calloway.”
The fact that he would take their intimate moments and weaponize them against her has me cracking my knuckles. “That’s also very illegal.”
“So? No one will care. They’ll just remember what she did and how she begged for my cock. It’s career-ruining.” He stands, agitation radiating off him. “I swear to fucking God, Asher. I can’t have her with Prince Louis any longer. I must end this before I lose my damn mind. After what I share, no one will want her. She’ll be reduced to a whore.”
“Let it go, Josh. You’ll destroy your family’s company if you don’t. Be logical,” I tell him, trying to snap him back to reality. “This is a felony. Jail time. She’ll know it was you, and she has the money to prove it. She’s a Calloway. You really don’t want to do this.”
“The consequences can get fucked,” he shoots back defiantly. “I love her. After what I show the world, I’ll be the only one who will want her.”
“What does that even mean?” I ask, feeling my mask begin to slip.