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Nerves swirled inside me as I drew closer, and when I reached them, my father was the first to notice me. A broad smile lit up his face, and I couldn’t ever remember a time when he’d looked at me like that. “Charlotte.”

At the mention of my name, my mother turned in my direction, the couple she had been talking to making a swift escape. “Oh, Charlotte, you look wonderful!” she beamed, her greedy eyes landing on the diamond necklace I wore around my neck.

I couldn’t say the same about my parents; in the short space of time since I last saw them, my father looked like he had lost a lot of weight, his clothes hung off him, and dark shadows lay underneath his eyes.

As for my mother, if you didn’t know her, you would be forgiven for thinking she looked perfect, but I knew differently. She wasn’t wearing anywhere near the amount of jewelry she usually wore to these events. The purple dress she was wearing was one she’d worn before, something she would never do, and her blonde hair hadn’t been dyed in weeks if the dark roots coming through were to go by.

“Hello, Father. Mother.” I nodded curtly to them both, keeping a gap between us so they couldn’t pull me into their arms. “Thank you for coming to our marriage celebration.”

I should have felt sorry for the pang of hurt that washed over my father’s face, yet not one ounce of me did. Nor did I feel guilty for their look of dishevelment, and I wondered that even after giving me away to pay off their debts, it hadn’t been enough to keep the wolf from the door.

“Come here and give me a hug,” Mother crooned, flashing her teeth, which were stained with red lipstick.

Another sign that my mother wasn’t her usual pristine self.

“No, thank you,” I replied. “I understand you wanted to discuss something with me?”

Her features fell, whether it was in rejection or because I knew she wanted something from me, I didn’t know. Next to her, my father shuffled from foot to foot, his head lowered in shame.

“We’ve missed you, honey,” Mother said, her tone devoid of any affection. I refrained from rolling my eyes, instead raising a brow and waiting for her to answer my question. “We were happy to hear that you and Jacob were married. I knew our agreement with him would work out well.”

I clenched my jaw, holding back the sudden urge to scream at them and tell them every punishment I had experienced at Jacob’s hands. What would be the point in telling them, though? It wasn’t as if they would take me away from him, nor was I sure I even wanted that.

“I would very much like to get back to our celebrations, Mother. What did you want?”

She glanced at my father, who was still staring at the floor. I didn’t hold much respect for my father, but having had time away from them and realizing the hold my mother had over him, the final piece of respect went out the window.

“Well, uh…we, as in your father and I,” my mother stuttered, looking anywhere but at me. “We have a little financial situation we’re stuck in, and we were wondering if you would speak to Jacob and ask him for another loan.”

For several seconds, I could only gape at her audacity. She was asking me for money despite using me to pay off her five-million-dollar debt? Unbelievable.

A small grin crept over my lips. “You’re unreal, you know that, Mother?” She opened her mouth to reply, but I held a hand up to silence her. A snort escaped me as I shook my head. “I was so mad at you when Jacob collected me that night; I couldn’t understand how a parent could just give away their flesh and blood to pay off a debt, but you know what? It was the best thing that could have ever happened because it meant I got to be free of you.” My voice began to rise as the thread holding my temper together began to fray. “No, I won’t ask Jacob to give you more money. I wouldn’t even ask him to give you a few cents to buy food and water. You reap what you sow.”

Her mouth dropped open, not used to me standing up to her or telling her no. My father finally lifted his gaze from the floor and was staring at me with the same disbelief my mother was.

There was so much I wanted to say to him, but it would have been a waste of breath. He decided where his loyalty lay the night he agreed to go along with my mother’s plan.

Disgust curled my lip as my eyes darted between them, knowing that this would be the last time I ever saw either of them again. “I think I have said everything I need to say to you both, so if you would please leave. You’re not welcome here, and you’re not welcome in my life ever again.”

I didn’t give them a chance to reply as I spun on my heel, overcome with emotion and tears threatening to fall. I didn’t regret what I’d just said, but I couldn’t ignore the sense of rejection from the two people who were supposed to love and protect me, no matter what.

I didn’t need them, though; I had Jacob. So what if he had his psycho side? He loved me. He cared for me, protected me, and he would never have thrown me away like yesterday’s garbage.

Scanning the ballroom for him, needing his comfort, I was met with disappointment when I couldn’t see him. His father and Edward were also missing, so, figuring I would find the toilet and take a few moments to compose myself, I headed out of the ballroom, bumping into a waiter and asking for directions to the bathroom.

I took off in the direction he pointed, but somewhere along the way, I must have taken a wrong turn. I walked down the hallway, my gaze clacking on the marble floor, when the creaking of a door opening sounded, and a hand wrapped around my mouth, preventing me from releasing a piercing scream.

Dragged backwards, I wriggled in the strong embrace, trying to free myself, only to be suddenly released. I lost my balance and fell onto my ass, wincing at the pain that shot through me. The clicking of a lock echoed around the room, and I glanced up at my captor, my heart plummeting to my stomach at realizing who I was trapped in a room with.

Edward.

Chapter 31

“What do you want?” I asked, attempting to keep the fear vibrating through me from showing in my voice.

Edward smirked as he leaned against the door with his hands folded across his chest. Several tense beats passed before he stepped toward me, offering his hand to help me up. “I won’t hurt you if that’s what you’re worried about.”

I scoffed. “Says the man who just shoved me into a locked room.”