“What are you doing here?” Nate says.
“I wanted to make sure you saw the article! And kicked this bitch out! She’s supposed to be crying and shit, not sitting here sipping on a latte.”
“Are you stalking us?” I ask, disturbed by the possibility.
“This is a public place.” She puts her hands on her hips. “Didn’t Barron try to kill you? He tried to when my pregnancy went bad.”
Oh geez. I vaguely remember the story Nate told me. “You mean when you faked a pregnancy to marry Nate, but got caught?”
“I didn’t fake shit!”
I’m not going to argue this, because she’s obviously going to believe whatever fantasy she wants to believe in. I can almost hear Nate grinding his teeth, while Dad just looks shocked.
“I don’t care what that old man thinks!” Georgette waves her index finger, a hand on her hip. “He should’ve tossed you out on your ass! I know your baby isn’t real. Nate can’t get anybody pregnant, okay? That’s why I couldn’t, even though I did everything to have his baby.”
Nate has obviously had enough, because he gets up and starts to push her away. Go, go, Nate. Dad doesn’t need to hear this.
Suddenly something clicks in the back of my mind. “Are you the source for that article?”
“Of course!” she says triumphantly. “Who else knows the truth? If it weren’t for me, you would’ve never married him, you skank. Do you know how hard it is to slip something into a drink at a casino? So many people watching. I had to dress up like one of those loser waitresses and learn the ordering system!”
I can’t believe it. We were drugged in Vegas, and Georgette was behind it all? Holy shit. I wondered how we ended up not remembering what happened the night before, but wow.
The back of my neck begins to prickle, and I realize people are staring. Of course, Georgette’s drawing everyone’s attention. She might as well have shown up in hooker heels and that mink bikini.
And Dad is still looking stunned. How am I supposed to explain all this to him?
Georgette isn’t finished. Nor does she care that people are pulling out their phones to record her crazy antics. “And then I had to practically drag him over to the chapel! But you…you wouldn’t leave! No, you had to tag along like a leech! You stole my wedding!”
She was going to drug Nate into marrying her? Who goes this far? It’s not even love. It’s insanity.
Her eyes glow with manic intensity. “The stupid security donkey thought you were with him! You! Who in right mind would want to be with you?” She’s yelling now, spittle flying everywhere.
>
“Enough!” Nate says between his teeth, and yanks her arm.
“You know she’s a lying little bitch!” she pleads with him, trying to shove him away to continue this mad confrontation.
Dad’s phone buzzes on the table, but he doesn’t check it. He’s too busy gawking at Georgette. Hard to blame him—that was my reaction when I first saw her.
“Admit it! Tell everyone whose baby that really is!”
Nate picks her up of the ground to separate us, and she kicks wildly. One of her legs sweeps everything off the table as Nate, cursing under his breath, forcibly carries her away. Georgette screams as she goes, her nails clawing at his back.
“Oh, shit!” I bend down to start cleaning up the mess around our table. Dad’s phone is on the floor, right next to a spreading pool of coffee. I pick it up, noticing the screen is still intact. Letting out a soft breath, I start to hand it to him until I see a text he missed.
We don’t have all week. Is your daughter gonna give you the 100k or not?
For a second, I don’t understand. What is this about? I read it again. This time, each word sinks into my head, etching its meaning like acid on metal.
“What is this?” I whisper.
He snatched the phone out of my grip, the movement adder-quick. “Are you all right?” he asks, ignoring my question. “Who was that? Nate’s ex?” He shakes his head. “I hope he takes care of that woman. It’s humiliating for you.”
“The text, Dad.”
“Ah, it’s nothing. Just some business stuff. That woman, though. Whew! It’s been a while since—”