She, the Kingdom (She #1)(59)
Amelia pointed to Dawn. “That camera? Morgan, what the sam heck is going on?”
I twisted my hair up into a bun, trying to buy time to think how to explain. “It’s a long story.”
She crossed her arms. “I have all day.”
Max stood next to me, straightening his tie. “Morgan signed an NDA, Amelia. Whatever she didn’t tell you, wasn’t because she didn’t want to.”
Amelia narrowed her eyes at Max, looking at him like rotten vermin. “What did you make her do, Max?”
Max slipped his hand around my waist, pulling me to his side, and gazed at me while he spoke his next words. “I’ve fallen in love with her.”
“What?” Amelia shrieked.
Dawn stood still like a frightened animal. “Um,” she squeaked. “I’ll come back.”
“Thank you, Dawn,” Max said, nodding to her.
I ushered Amelia to the dining table, while Max saw Dawn out. I waited until he sat next to me. She watched with wary eyes as he interlaced his fingers in mine.
“I fired Morgan on purpose,” Max began, already looking ashamed. “This is a twisted story, Amelia, and I’m a twisted man. How much do you want to know?”
“I want her to tell me,” Amelia said quietly, nodding toward me.
I squirmed in my chair, but agreed. “The day I was fired, Max came over with an NDA and an agreement. It wasn’t for surrogacy. He’s… he’s a man of particular needs, and…” I sighed. Describing our reality to someone else was surreal… and harder than I imagined. “He basically paid me more than I made at the hospital, plus benefits and a car, for sexual favors—but they weren’t sexual in nature. I declined. Sophie approached me at the gala I attended with you and talked me into it.”
“Sophie?” Amelia frowned. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. “I don’t need to know anymore. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that she set you up.”
I nodded, relieved. Max squeezed my hand, remorse darkening his face.
“I understand,” Amelia said to me, standing. She glared at Max. “I don’t forgive you.”
Max nodded. “The least of what I deserve from someone who loves Morgan.”
Amelia walked around the table and hugged me. “I can’t imagine what you’ve been going through. Call me when you’re ready.”
I offered a small, sad smile, watching her leave.
Max turned to me, suddenly worried. He clasped both of my hands in his. “Morgan…”
“How long did you know about the camera?”
“After we… after you and I… Sophie showed me the recording. When I admitted my feelings for you, she seemed jealous and demanded that I stay away. Then, she demanded I go to you and cut ties. Her family’s been millions in debt since before we married. She never intended to stay with me. She’s been having an affair with Landry since college, before and after we married. The entire time.”
“I’m so sorry,” I said, touching his cheek. “I can’t imagine how that must feel.”
He sighed. “I knew about the camera for a week. She said if I told you, she’d release everything. I was trying to protect you. The morning after you’d found the camera, I left here late, and Sophie wasn’t expecting me. I caught her in bed with Landry. I snapped a picture. Now we both have ammunition, but you have the most to lose. I couldn’t live with myself if your children…” he choked on the last words.
“My children!” I held my hand to my head. “They’re coming home in the morning.”
“In the morning?”
“I can keep them safe from it for the rest of the summer, but once they go to school, if the rumors aren’t squashed Josh and Hannah will hear a version of what’s going on.”
Max cupped my jaw, gazing into my eyes. “I’ll take care of it. I’ll take care of everything. I have to get back to work, but—Dawn will be back to finish up, and I’ll have a few things sent over.”
“You don’t have to do that,” I said pulling back.
He grabbed me and kissed me deeply. When he finally released me, we were both breathing hard, struggling to return to a calmer state. “I do. I can. And I will.”
Chapter Seventeen After hearing some commotion outside, I looked out the dining room window to see five trucks and one Mercedes parked at the curb in front of my house. One from a carpet company, one from a furniture store, a landscaper, a painter, and a truck from a tile and granite store. The side of the Mercedes said Wichita Design Group.
They all jogged to my front door, seeming to race one another. I turned the knob and pulled, greeting them all with wide-eyes. “Hi. Can I help you?”
“We’ve come to measure and assess, and then we’ll be out of your hair for a few hours while we gather and cut materials. Mr. Kingston sent us.”
“Why?” I asked.
The interior decorator pushed up her rectangular, berry-colored glasses. “He’s paying us a lot of money to spruce up the house for your children by morning. May we come in and get started?”
“Uh…” I looked to Dawn, who smiled and nodded. “Yes,” I said, stepping aside.
They all spread out through the house, measuring my rooms, my island, and taping the baseboards and window sills. Within an hour, all but the painter was gone.