Page 181

a black cardigan, a single strand of pearls, and white pumps.

“Emily!” Sandra seemed genuinely happy to see her, but not

surprised. “You’re just in time for dinner.”

Emily had no idea what that meant. She was caught off

guard, even though she promised herself that she’d be ready

for anything. When she stepped into the house and followed

her mom to the dining room, she saw the table was set for

three and her dad was already at the head of it. They were

expecting her. Because of what her dad did, they were so

certain she’d be back as soon as Dani closed up the store for

the day and delivered the news.

It made her blood boil that they’d just assumed they could

do this to her. To Dani. That they could so casually destroy

someone’s life and think nothing of it. Dad thinks he saved me.

It was apparent from the satisfied, not smug, look on his face.

He was dressed in a black dress shirt and black pants. He’d at

least stripped off his tie, so the room felt more like a dining

room and less like a black-tie formal affair.

Emily’s nails bit int her palms when she closed her hands

into tight fists. She wanted to scream at her parents that this

wasn’t normal. Eating dinner while dressed like they were

going to a freaking high society function wasn’t normal. It

wasn’t normal that they thought they could just buy someone

out of someone else’s life. That they could buy loyalty and

allegiance and obedience.

Emily didn’t want to think about how she herself had

thought she could buy Dani’s help when she’d set up the

whole agreement. She wasn’t trying to hurt Dani. She forced

herself to calm down and consider that maybe her parents

weren’t trying to hurt anyone either. Maybe they were just