The Bride's Revenge A Surprise You Can't Survive

“Look, Ronnie, let me explain. Lily was a virgin when she came to me. Eight hundred a night. That's practically a bargain.”

“I did this for your sake, too. You have no idea how dirty the girls out there can be. One wrong move and you catch something nasty.”

“But Lily's different. I handpicked her. She's clean, hardworking, eager to learn, sweet and considerate. The day you and I get married, she'll move out on her own.”

Eight hundred a night. Every single night, no days off.

That was at least twenty-four thousand a month on Lily Graves alone.

No wonder he was always telling me his salary wasn't enough, that he couldn't afford a bigger place.

He'd been spending it all between another woman's legs.

Three years of cheating, and he had the nerve to call himself clean.

And me? I'd been the fool. When my mom insisted he buy at least a thousand-square-foot condo before the wedding, I was the one who talked her out of it.

When he saw I wasn't asking for anything, that I'd set the bride price at just $8,800 for good luck, his eyes welled up with tears.

He knelt in front of my mother and swore:

“Mom, I promise! I'll treat Ronnie right. I'll love her and take care of her. I'll work hard and give her the best of everything!”

But the money he earned? What he spent on me in an entire month wasn't even a fraction of what he gave Lily Graves.

I stared at the face in front of me, so familiar, and couldn't reconcile it with the man I'd loved for three years.

I loved him for him. For how good he was to me. For his discipline, his self-respect, and for honoring my wish to wait until marriage.

I thought if he could endure three years of celibacy, he'd never betray me.

It never once occurred to me that from the very first time I turned him down, he'd already been betraying me.

At least it wasn't too late.

To show how sorry he was, Carter transferred his entire month's salary to me.

I was about to decline.

But then he pressed a business card into my hand.

“We're getting married soon. It's time you started learning some essential skills.”

“This is Lily's number. Add her. Pick up some tips from her when you get the chance.”

“Once you've got it down, I'll hand over every paycheck!”

“I really can't wait for your surprise!”

Before I could refuse, he'd already called Lily and told her we were all having dinner together.

It wasn't until we arrived at the restaurant that it truly hit me: he actually expected the three of us to sit down at the same table.

The whole point was for me to learn from Lily Graves how to please him.

I lost it:

“Carter Rowe, do I look cheap to you? If she wants to sell herself, that's her business. Don't you dare drag me into your filth!”

He looked even angrier than I was, his brows twisted in disbelief:

“What? I'm handing you money to learn how to take care of a man, and you don't want it?”

“Lily's willing to teach you for free. If anything, you should be the one picking up the check tonight. What are you cursing me out for?”

Lily Graves, face done up in that calculated no-makeup look, the picture of wide-eyed innocence, reached over and smoothed the crease between his brows.

Her voice went syrupy sweet:

“Carter, don't be so hard on her! It's normal that she's not comfortable with this yet. You have to be patient with her, just like you were when you first taught me……”

The suggestion dripping from those words sent the blood rushing straight to Carter's face.

Just when I thought he was about to kiss her, he shooed her out of the private room.

Unease surged through me, and I moved to leave too.

Carter grabbed my wrist:

“Ronnie, I don't think I can wait anymore. Can I?”

I felt him pressed against me and grabbed the ice-cold Coke off the table, dumping it straight over his head.

But instead of flinching, he grinned, voice thick with amusement:

“Ronnie, are you shy? Or is it that you're jealous?”