And with that, they were gone. I definitely wanted to kill them before the reapers.
Chapter Nineteen
Poppy
Someone could pinch me;I was ready to wake up.
A freakin’ penthouse suite that overlooked Central Park? I mean,shut up.
My father’s penthouse was nice, but nothing like this. Nothing even close to this. This place had to cost at least…
“Forty million,” Jane interrupted my thoughts as we stared up at the building where the Uber driver dropped us off.
“What?” I asked, my jaw practically on the floor.
“That’s how much he paid for this place,” Jane chewed on her thumbnail as she scrolled on her phone, possibly looking at listing photos of our new home.
“Let’s get on with it then,” I gripped my bag like it was my lifeline, and a doorman greeted us at the entrance.
“Ms. Poppy Fairchild, what an honor it is to meet you. Mr. Donovan has told me much about you, and we are thrilled to have you here. If there is anything you need, pleasedon’t hesitate to ask. My name is George, and I look forward to getting to know you better.” His eyes skipped over me kindly before landing on Jane. He tucked his hands behind his back as he leaned forward to greet her. “And Ms. Jane, what a pleasure!”
He tipped his hat, and I watched as his bright white hair clung to the material before he put it back on his head. I decided then that I liked him and that it might not be so bad living here.
“Your private elevator is through the back there,” he motioned down a short hall. “And you have access to the gym and, of course, our laundry service if you are in need of it. Your elevator will also take you to your private parking garage floor, if you should need that, as well.”
“Thank you so much,” I said as he bowed his head and reached behind the desk next to him. He pulled out two cards and handed each of them to us.
“These will grant you access to anywhere you need to be in the building. Have a wonderful day!”
I was stunned as we stepped into the elevator. Yes, my father had more money than I knew now what to do with… but this… this was a different luxury entirely. I was sure my father could afford this, I mean, I now knew he could, but he had his reasons for wanting to live the way he did, and we would never know them now.
The doors slid closed, and Jane whirled on me, her hair arching around her shoulders as her eyes went wide. “Who is Donovan Madden?”
The littlest bit of hope I had that she’d ignored thatcomment went right out the window. I thought I had a little bit more time to hide. “He’s my fiancé.”
Her eyes were so big and round she looked like a character out of a Disney Pixar movie. “Your what?”
I’d answered enough questions last night after I’d come back to the hotel room in a robe and with stitches. I was honest with her because she deserved the truth, but this was different… I was doing this for her, but she could never know that. She could never know just how horrible our family really was, especially since our mother hadn’t spoken to either of us since the will reading. She didn’t deserve any more heartbreak. We’d both been through enough already.
I blew out a breath and laughed a little. “Apparently, arranged marriages are a thing in our circles.”
Jane snorted. “Yeah, right, be serious.”
My shoulders slumped, and all the amusement on her face slid free. “You’re serious.”
“I wish I wasn’t.”
“Jacob and Jones?”
I nodded once. “They arranged it, but it’s just to keep our family safe. Everything that happened yesterday shouldn’t happen again now that we have his family’s protection.”
Jane’s brows pulled together. “I don’t believe you, but okay.”
I pressed my lips together to keep from spilling the beans. All I wanted to do was confide insomeone. I didn’t want this burden on my own, but I needed to find someone else to talk to. I definitely needed a therapist.
Theprivate elevator opened up in the foyer of my new home, and my jaw went back to the floor. Jane squealed and shimmied her shoulders. “This issocool!”
A small smile stretched across my lips as her excitement rubbed off on me. “This is pretty interesting.”
