Page 11 of Beautiful Lies

“Mia, please.” Of course, like most people with eyes, Mia would notice that Knox Vale is attractive as sin. I just don’t need the reminder.

“It’s true. All I’m seeing right now is a dangerously handsome man in a suit.” She waves a hand over the laptop screen like she’s showing off a jewel at auction. “And look at all that ex-linebacker muscle on his shoulders.”

Of course, Mia’s done her research, too. But in typical Mia fashion, she’s focused on all the wrong things.

Apparently, he earned the Monsternickname in college.Knox Vale, the fearless linebacker who demolished anything in his path.The articles online talk about him like he was some kind of legend. But all I see is a man who learned how to strike fear in everyone. Even his own teammates.

And that’s the guy I’m supposed to marry.

“I don’t care how good he looks. I’m trying to see what I’m up against. Knowledge is power.”

“Or your destruction,” she croons in that I’m-three-years-older-than-you-and-therefore-wiser tone I loathe.

I want to argue but don’t because she might be right. Everything I’ve read about Knox has either intimidated me or left me feeling guilty for what my father did.

I close my eyes and exhale like a condemned woman approaching the gallows. “God, I’m screwed.”

Mia places an arm around my shoulder and gives me a gentle squeeze. “You need to rest. That’s what you need. I know everything is crazy right now, but you need a clear mind. All you have is tomorrow to… you know.Think.”

I give her a thin stare. Surely, she knows there’s very little to think about here.

And I havethought. Everything under the sun has drifted through my mind with no resolutions. Heck, I’ve even thought of robbing a bank. Not that I a)wouldor b)coulddo such a thing.

Perhaps if I knew the same sort of unsavory people as my father, I’d have a shot. Since I don’t, I’m totally, utterly, absolutely screwed.

“Mia, there’s nothing to think about.” I bite the inside of my lip and gaze at her, taking in the worry on her face. “My current options are: walk away and let my mother suffer or marry that asshole so I can afford my mother’s medical care. Since I’m not the kind of person who would turn her back on her mom, we pretty much know what I have to do.”

Her hand slips from my shoulder, and her chest caves. “I’m sorry. I was just …hoping for some other solutions. Maybe you could talk to Knox, see if he’d be willing to work something out.”

“Like what?” I widen my eyes at her. “What am I going to say to him? My father trapped me with not just a marriage clause but the damn six-month sale restriction. And a debt to a man he shouldn’t owe. What the hell am I supposed to say?”

“I don’t know. Demanding marriage to pay a debt just seems so archaic.”

“Of course, it’s archaic. But it is what it is.”

“Maybe he’s just mad right now. Which is understandable.” She presses her lips together and places her hands on her cheeks. “Maybe when he calms down, he’ll consider allowing you to pay him back the loan in installments.”

“Installments? Do you know how long I’d be paying him back on my salary? It would take more than my lifetime.”

That is no exaggeration. My current job situation is shit. I’m not like Mia, who runs her own day-care center, or my friends from college, who are flying high in their careers.

I’m a scenic artist. I paint worlds that don’t exist, for people who’ll forget them the moment the curtain falls. I had a steadyjob two years ago at a theater in Boston. I was lucky to get it right after college. Then the place burned to the ground, taking all my set designs and portfolio with it. The building was so far gone no one even considered rebuilding.

Since then, it’s been freelancing gigs and temporary contracts, one backdrop at a time.

The job I have now is at a small theater on the edge of the city, and it isn’t even permanent. I’ve also been on part-time hours since Dad died.

“I can just about pay my rent,” I mutter. “There’s no way I could even dream of taking on anything else. And the restaurant is just making enough to pay the staff, pay the mortgage here, and Mom’s medical bills.”

What a mess.

“You could still ask him.” Mia looks hopeful. “There’s no harm.”

“There’s also no point.”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s not just the loan repayment he wants, Mia. He wants to bleed me dry for the scandal, too.” The more I’ve read and thought about the situation, the more I’ve realized that Knox is out for blood.My blood. He can’t hurt my father, but he can certainly hurt me.