I purse my lips, gazing out the window as the driver comes closer and closer to my harsh reality. Iknowthingsare bad. And I hate what my life has become. A black ugliness swirls inside me. My heart stutters in despair as the sedan glides to a halt at the curb outside our building. I hate myself for letting things get so out of hand and feel nothing but soul-shattering regret.
In a flurry, the doorman hurries over to assist, as do a handful of security personnel. These are people I rely on for my safety, my sanity. I bite my lip. Black River is synonymous with small-town living. It lacks both the bustle of city life and the interference from reporters and paparazzi. It’s home, and I’m just Noah, not country music’s sweetheart, Noah Lane. Fuck, I wish I could have stayed.
As of this morning, Rhett’s anger at seeing me again had cooled, but it’d still simmered beneath every word that’d fallen from his lips. He made it clear that mine was a betrayal he may never forgive. And the hell of it is, I don’t blame him.
Waiting until security gives me the signal that they’re ready to escort me from the car, I quickly don a pair of big sunglasses and plunk my favorite black hat on my head. The door pops open, and I’m ushered from the vehicle. With a smile firmly in place, I put one booted foot onto the pavement and let the paparazzi do their thing.
Holding my composure, I wave at a group of people excitedly watching me traverse the distance from the carto my residence. The way people gather to observe my everyday movements still astounds me. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it.
Inside the lobby, I’m immediately sequestered in an elevator, and one of the guards uses his key card before punching the button for the top floor. Then I’m left alone with all the thoughts that’ve been crashing through my head for days now, and as I’m whisked upward, Rhett’s words ring in my ears.Go back to your penthouse with a view, Noah.
If only he knew this is the last place I want to be, or what I’m returning to.
The NDA Harold forced on me prevents me from telling Rhett the truth. A derisive chuckle huffs from my chest at the memory of the day I signed my life away a second time. I’d stood before Mr. Hemstock, begging him to drop me from the label, pleading for an out, anything that would allow me to go home. But he’d just laughed in my face. I was making them too much money. When I brought Bradley’s unsolicited behavior to his attention, thinking it would play in my favor, it backfired. His words still ring in my ears.This is show business, baby.
The elevator gives a jolt as it reaches the top floor, yanking me from my thoughts. The door opens, and then there’s nothing left for me to do but face Bradley. Itamp down the riot of emotion that’s twisting inside me like a writhing snake.
Pressing a hand to my stomach, a sick sensation barrels into me. There’s nothing I can do to calm the rising nerves. My gut rebels angrily. I spent this weekend with friends and family. I had a bachelorette party. I picked out a wedding dress. My family is making travel plans. And every word I’d uttered about how happy I am was a fucking lie.
Squeezing my eyes shut, my breath comes shallow and unsteady.Bite the bullet, Noah. This was your home first. Don’t let him take that from you, too.
With clammy hands and a battered heart, I’ll face the music, however the tune plays out. Traveling farther into the spacious penthouse, I scan the length of the apartment in hopes that Bradley’s not here. A shaky sigh departs my lungs as relief eases the tension in my shoulders. Thankfully, there’s no sign of my husband-to-be. Maybe I’ll have a chance to get settled in before I’ve gotta deal with him at rehearsals later on. I’m playing for a sold-out venue in a day’s time, so I’ll hardly have a second to acclimate to being thrust back into this fictitious world. Frankly, I could use the time alone to sort through the mess inside my head.
My heart lurches in surprise as I stop short in the entrance to the living room. Cautiously, I set down my guitar and shoulder bag. Words yank free from my chestbefore I have a second to think about them. “Holy fuck! I didn’t know you were here.”
Bradley eyes me from the couch, completely still with venom in his beady gaze. “Glad to see you’ve finally graced me with your presence, Noah. What does my little whore have to say for herself?”
Pulse quickening, I press a hand to my chest in hopes of calming the furious thrumming behind my rib cage. “I’m sorry, what? Did you just call me a whore?” My first instinct is to back up a step, but I don’t. Confusion lodges in my throat as I scramble to get a handle on the shitstorm of unknown origins I’ve apparently returned to.
Bradley eyes me with a shrewd hawklike gaze. “I said”—his speech slows, delivering each word with a precise bite—“what do you fucking have to say for yourself,whore?”
Anger spikes in my blood. The rigidness of his posture and the sneer on his face mean trouble, but the reason for his animosity hasn’t made itself clear yet. Dread hits me square in the chest, but I stand my ground. “I’m entitled to go see my family, Brad. How am I supposed to convince them this is real when you’re breathing down my neck every five minutes?”
“Shut the fuck up,” he spits as his hand shoots out, fingers curling around my bicep and yanking me to him. Our bodies collide, and a ragged breath heaves from hischest. “Your family isn’t my concern;heis.” His hand bites into my arm, twisting and forcing me to look at the coffee table. “You fucking bitch. Do you spread your legs for everyone, or does your cunt only dampen for pussy-whipped ranchers?” he snarls, gripping me by the nape of my neck and roughly jerking me around.
I gasp in pain, trying to pull free of his vicious hold. “Get your fucking hands off me.”
Commanding my chin with brutal force, he aims my stare at the coffee table once more. Image after image of me and Rhett cover the surface. The photos capture the intense argument he and I had outside Boozin’ Boots—a private moment between us that no one was ever meant to see, something that never should have happened at all.
Bradley shakes me, and a deep growl erupts from his chest. “Care to fucking explain this?”
“Fuck you.” My face flushes, but all I can do is stare at the evidence of what’d transpired between Rhett and me in the heat of the moment.Where the fuck did those come from? How did he get them?I never once saw anyone who remotely looked like paparazzi while I was home. Never knew anyone was watching. My gaze flicks to Bradley. “Were you having me followed?”
“You bet your ass I was. And rightly fucking so,” he bites out, face less than an inch from mine. His eyes are cold. Menacing.
“What I do is none of your business.”
“The hell it isn’t.” His open palm meets my cheek with a sharp crack, the force of it whipping my head to one side. A strangled cry falls from my lips, and I drag in a breath as shock crashes through me. Pain bursts along my cheekbone. There’s a ringing in my ears, and in a stunned fog, I remain completely still, staring into nothing.He hit me. I can’t believe he fucking hit me.
“In case you’ve forgotten, we have a contract. Everything you do, every move you make, ismybusiness.” What happened with Rhett has smudged the fine print. And from the sting of my cheek, Bradley is not happy about it. His voice drips with condescension, and his words punch into my chest. He’s not concerned about mecheatingon him. This is all about his image. And control. As far as Bradley is concerned, I’m his property.
“Come on. Tell me how you used your trip home—that was supposed to be wedding-related—to fuck around on me with your pathetic ex-fiancé. Do you realize how bad this fucking looks, Noah?” He chuckles, the sound ugly. “Nobody, and I meannobody,disrespects me like that. Remember what happened the last time you colored outside that line? I got what I wanted. You, with my ring on your finger, and a noose around your neck.”
Once again, memories of the day I sat across the desk from Bradley’s father come crashing in with the force of a tsunami wave.
“You want out?” Harold slides two thick stacks of paper toward me. “Here’s my proposition.”
My watery gaze roams over the cover page before darting back to Harold’s keen stare. “What is this?”
