Indebted: Part Three (Series Finale): The Virgin & The Bad-Boy Billionaire (A BWWM Billionaire Romance) by Sadie Black Page B

make things right, but then he genuinely fell in love with you. Why can't you believe that?"
     
    I try to shake the embedded memory of Marjorie's smug little face free from my mind. The vivid details of that day swirl in front of my eyes as I flashback to her standing there in Matthew’s lobby. Her green eyes sparkled with excitement as she explained how she used her father's company to lure me in and then exploited the information to dig into my past. She looked so fucking proud of herself. The worst part was how overjoyed she was to tell me about how Matthew's father killed my own Dad while he was drunk at the wheel. "Matthew shouldn't have been looking for me at all, I have three brothers Brianna. Why didn't he spend any time searching for them? Or better yet, why didn't he bother tracking Mama down when she was still with us? If he wanted to make things right, he should've done it with her."
     
    "I'm sure there's a good reason he didn't, Kendra. Why do you always have to assume the worst of people? The fact that he wanted to make up for his father's mistake should tell you that he's a great guy. Instead, you have to turn it into some kind of creepy stalker thing or act like he’s lying about loving you." Brianna’s eyebrows scrunch together as she lets out a deep sigh of frustration, "when he talked to me here," she points at the booth I stumbled upon them sitting at together, "it was so clear that he loved you.”
     
    She stops and checks my face for a reaction, or signs of life, but I don’t even flicker and eyelash. She purses her lips but continues, “like, he was torn up. He knew you wouldn't accept him after you found out why he found you in the first place. And I sat there and told him he was wrong,” she snorts at the memory. “ I actually thought you would get over it, that you would see him for the amazing guy he is. But, sometimes I think you want to choose misery all the time, and I’ve gotta say, it’s getting old fast."
     
    "If that’s how you feel, how about you butt out and let me decide what’s best for my own life! I’m not trying to be miserable; I just don't want to be another one of his charity causes. It just feels weird to me, I mean, why didn't he tell me before that his father killed mine?"
     
    "Probably because he was afraid you'd do this!" She waves her hand at me, disgusted. "Just shut him out at the first opportunity and act like he's a psycho just because he has a conscience. Like, what do you think is going on under the surface here? What ulterior motive do you think he could possibly have?"
     
    "You know what? I don't even want to know. I'm done thinking about Matthew Blackwell, and I'm done fucking talking about him too," I shoot her a look.
     
    "Fine," she purses her lips together into a line so thin it looks like a scar across her face. "I'll say this and then I'll drop it forever: you're making a fucking mistake that you'll never stop regretting. If you search your heart, I think you'll see that the real reason you're running away from him is because you're afraid." She points her finger at me accusingly.
     
    "Oh? What am I so afraid of, Dr. Phil?"
     
    Brianna stiffens at my tone, "Don’t talk to me like that, Kendra. I know you. I know that you're afraid to let yourself be happy again.”
     
    “Pffft,” I roll my eyes, but my stomach twists as her words hit me like a dentist drill without enough novocaine.
     
    She balls her hands into little fists and places them on her hips, “I've watched you pull away from everything ever since your Mama passed. You seem to think that you can just throw everyone away and stay in your shell, and then you can't get hurt again. And maybe you won’t ever get hurt again, but guess what?” Brianna narrows her eyes at me, “You'll never be happy again either."
     
    She let's the idea marinate with me as she walks back out of the dining area and into the back of the restaurant, no doubt to fill her lungs with cigarette smoke.