Hold Me Closer (Sea Island Brides Book 1) (16 page)

“You
might not have any money, but from the chatter on the island last
night, you and your rich boyfriend are expected to announce your
engagement any day now. Soon you’ll be a Montgomery, and you’ll
have plenty of money. Or is that another lie?”

His
smile disturbed her. When she first approached him with the idea of
taking pictures for her, she thought he was just a sweet geeky guy.
If she had known he was capable of being such a greedy creep, she
would have never gotten him involved in her plan.

“I
don’t know where you got your information, but I’m not
giving you a dime. Even if I did have the Montgomery billions at my
fingertips.” She turned to walk away, but Mark grabbed her
wrist and pulled her back toward him. His grip was so tight, it sent
a sharp pain up her arm and she pressed her lips together to keep
from crying out.

“I’ve
known girls like you all my life. You think you can strut around in
your skimpy little outfits and geeks like me will do anything you
ask. Well, you picked the wrong geek this time, sweetheart. Do you
think I agreed to take those pictures because I liked you?”
Mark snorted, anger gleaming in his eyes.

“You
are going to get me twenty thousand dollars by next week or I will
make sure that your new boyfriend knows the truth about those
photographs.”

“Fine,”
she yelled, wrenching her arm away from his grasp. “Tell him.
No, actually, I’ll tell him myself. You have no power over me,
Mark. Unlike you, I’m not in this for the money.”

With
shaking hands, she rubbed the spot on her wrist that still stung. Her
heartbeat pulsed in her ears, as loud as a bass drum in a marching
band. She held her head high despite her fear and turned again toward
the dress shop, but Mark’s next words stopped her dead in her
tracks.

“I’ll
give the tabloids the story of the century,
then. I’ll tell them all about Julia and the Montgomery’s
bastard child.”

Fury
rose up inside of Annabelle, so violent and strong that she wanted to
lunge at him, but instead she was stone still, her fear stronger than
her anger. She spun toward him, her face flushed.

“How
did you find out about that?”

“I
have my ways.” He smiled in triumph, and Annabelle cursed at
herself for allowing him to see he had hit a nerve.

“You
have no right to bring Julia into this. She has nothing to do with
it.”

“It
seems to me that she has a lot to do with it, considering she’s
the one who’s pregnant. The way I see it, she has a lot more at
stake here than you do. But if you don’t care about her, then
don’t worry about it.”

“You
asshole.” Annabelle gritted her teeth and stared at him in
anger. “What do you want from me?”

“Twenty
thousand dollars,” he said. “Or I go public with this
story.”

The
sound of footsteps behind her made Annabelle swing around in terror.
The last thing she needed was for Hudson’s sister to overhear
this conversation.

It
wasn’t Jilly who stood behind her, though. It was Scarlett,
Hudson’s older sister. With her long brown hair and sparkling
blue eyes, Annabelle recognized her from her pictures.

“Annabelle?”
she asked, half-smiling, but with a tentative look toward Mark. “Is
everything alright?”

“Scarlett,
right?” she said, forcing a smile and praying Mark kept his
mouth shut for once. “It’s great to finally meet you.”

She
threw her arms around Scarlett, hoping no one could hear the furious
pounding of her heart.

“Everything’s
fine,” she said. “I just happened to see an old friend of
mine. He was just leaving, weren’t you Mark?”

Mark
nodded toward Scarlett. “Nice to meet you, Ms. Montgomery,”
he said. “Annabelle, don’t forget what we talked about.”

A
bell jingled and Jilly poked her head out of the dress shop.
“Annabelle?”

Annabelle
forced cheer into her voice. “Are they ready for me?”

“Yes.
Antonio needs you in the dressing room. Is everything okay out here?”
Jilly frowned at Mark as he turned to leave.

Annabelle
rushed over to the door, hoping to diffuse the situation. “Sure,
everything’s fine,” she said. “And Scarlett made it
just in time.”

She
plastered a warm smile on her face and followed Jilly back into the
dress shop.

The
rest of the afternoon passed by in a haze. Her own picture in the
tabloids was one thing, but Julia’s? It wasn’t fair. She
had no idea how she was going to dig herself out of this mess. She
didn’t have anywhere close to twenty thousand dollars.

Not
even the gorgeous black ball gown could raise her spirits after her
encounter with Mark. Suddenly, she dreaded her upcoming dinner with
Hudson.

Just
when she’d decided to see this thing through to the end, it had
all started to fall down around her.

She
had no choice now. She was going to have to tell Hudson the truth.

Annabelle,

I
have been called away to New York on sudden business, and I’m
afraid it might be a few days before I can make it home again.
Nothing could keep me away from the engagement party, so I will see
you then, if not sooner. I
took the liberty of having your things moved into my suite, but feel
free to wear my boxers and t-shirts. That was quite the pleasant
sight this morning.

Hudson

Annabelle
wanted to cry. She had never before felt such a mix of desperation
and fear. After Mark’s threat to flaunt Julia’s pregnancy
in the media, Annabelle knew that her web of lies had come to an end.
She was in over her head now, and she needed help. If Mark broke that
story to the press, there would be no way to salvage Julia’s
reputation and any relationship with the Montgomery family would be
ruined.

Annabelle
didn’t even want to think about what would happen with Hudson.
She wouldn’t allow her heart to hope for anything more than the
days they had already shared. Mark’s threat was going to rob
them both of the fun they could have shared over the next few months
until the deal was signed.

She
spent her evening alone by the pool, looking out over the ocean and
trying to think of any way to get Mark to back off of his threat. She
would never forgive herself if her actions hurt Julia. The tabloids
would tear her cousin apart, especially if the Montgomerys were
forced to publicly deny her claim.

As
far as Mark’s money request was concerned, the twenty thousand
dollars might as well have been twenty million. The insurance money
she’d gotten after her parents died was substantial, but the
money was all but gone now. She’d been living off of it since
she was thirteen. There was only a few thousand dollars left, and it
would take time to withdraw it.

Time
she didn’t have.

Hours
of exploring every option she could come up with led her back to her
only real option. She needed Hudson’s help. He was obviously
more experienced at dealing with blackmail and the media than she
was, and he would have as much interest in keeping this story quiet
as Annabelle did. She knew he would be angry once he found out the
truth, but she was willing to sacrifice her own happiness to make
sure that Julia’s name wasn’t dragged through the mud.

Exhausted
from worry, Annabelle made her way up the grand staircase to Hudson’s
empty suite. She buried her head in the pillow and inhaled his scent,
wishing that they could have had one more night together before her
secrets were exposed.

Over
the next two days, the Montgomery plantation was a flurry of
activity. Lawn crews worked day and night to plant beautiful new beds
of fresh flowers and to keep the lawn green and beautiful. A small
stage was set up in the ballroom, and all of the furniture was
removed from the main rooms of the Big House to make space for the
two hundred guests on the list.

Mostly,
Annabelle just tried to stay out of the way. She spent some time
exploring the plantation and the rest of Sea Island, always in awe of
the beautiful homes and friendly residents. She took a tour of the
Cloister, the hotel on Sea Island famous for its visits from past
Presidents and dignitaries. Most afternoons, though, she ended up
back at their picnic spot near the old slave’s quarters.

To
occupy her mind, she sketched out her ideas for a public garden and
explored the old homes, making notes about possible renovations.
Planning the museum exhibits and the layout of the gardens they could
build for the community was the only task that kept her from losing
her mind in Hudson’s absence.

She’d
found peace in those sketches. Until now, she had moved from job to
job without a clue about the type of career that would make her
happy. Working on these renovation plans was the first time she’d
felt truly passionate about her work. It wasn’t a real job, of
course, but maybe when she got back to Atlanta, she would look for a
job renovating old spaces.

She
only wished she could stay here at Cottonwood to oversee the
renovation of this historical site.

Meanwhile,
there was still no sign of Hudson, and she felt a certain uneasiness
take root in her stomach. She didn’t want to talk to him about
this over the phone, but if she wasn’t able to tell him the
truth before the night of the party, it would be too late to call off
the engagement. Once their intention to marry was officially
announced, everything would get more complicated. She just needed a
few minutes alone with him before the party.

Friday
afternoon, Hudson called briefly to say that he would not be flying
in until just before the party on Saturday night, and Annabelle’s
heart sank.

“Are
you sure you can’t make it back?” she pleaded. “I
really want to see you before the announcement. There’s
something important I need to talk to you about.”

“I
wish I could, believe me. I’ll make it up to you after the
party.” The tone of his voice made his intentions clear. The
thought of being with him again made Annabelle’s body light up
like a bonfire. She longed for his touch. His kisses. His body next
to hers in the moonlight. Would she ever get a chance to feel his
arms around her again?

She
hung up, feeling restless and wishing she
had never worn that stupid bikini or come up with this crazy plan to
blackmail him. Julia always warned her that her habit of jumping in
with both feet before thinking things through would get her into
trouble someday, and she was right.

By
the time Saturday finally rolled around, Annabelle felt close to
panic. She only had a few days left before she had to face Mark with
an answer, and she was no closer to a solution. Throughout the day,
she kept asking about Hudson and when he was expected home. Everyone
seemed to think it was cute how she worried about him and seemed to
miss him so much. No one could have guessed what was really going on
inside her head.

At
four o’clock, a team of stylists ushered her into another suite
of the house to help her prepare for the party. A few weeks ago,
being pampered and having a team of professionals style her hair and
do her makeup would have made her giddy with excitement, but tonight
she could hardly crack a smile. She was too nervous about facing
Hudson.

All
hope of talking to him before the party was lost. Guests would be
arriving in a few short hours. Telling herself that she would try to
talk to him before the announcement was made, she did her best to
concentrate on getting ready. Before she knew it, the woman helping
her with her dress spun her around toward a full-length mirror to
view the results. Annabelle gasped. She had been so caught up in her
thoughts that she had barely noticed the transformation she was going
through on the outside.

Her
dress was like a dream. The fanciest thing she had ever worn before
was a prom dress, and even that was just a simple pink dress with
sequins. Tonight’s dress, however, was elegant and custom fit
to her form.

The
strapless black silk was covered with an intricate lace overlay and
clung to her in all the right places, accentuating her curves. With
her hair up in a French twist, her neck looked long and elegant. She
reached up to touch the diamonds sparkling at her throat. The
necklace was on loan from a jeweler in Atlanta, and she could hardly
believe it was hers for the evening.

“You
look stunning.” Annabelle smiled as Sue Ellen Montgomery came
through the door and gave her a hug.

“Thank
you so much for everything. I keep thinking I’ve stepped into a
dream.”

“No,
thank you for what you’re doing for our family, sugar.”
Sue Ellen held a small square box out to her and Annabelle’s
hands shook slightly as she took it.

“What’s
this?”

“Hudson
wanted to bring it to you himself, but he got in so late I told him
to run on and get ready before the guests start arriving. I have to
take care of a few things myself, so I won’t keep you.”