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That was something. That was everything.
TWENTY-SEVEN
worthy
CHLOE
I checked the clock—itwas almost time. Olivia Jensen had pulled a rabbit out of a hat and made arrangements for that very morning.
I couldn’t believe I was doing this again.
And this time would be so, so much worse. Because this time, I was going to have to tell the truth. About myself. To millions of people. On national television.
I closed my eyes and said a quick prayer.Mom, I hope you know I did all this for a good reason. I promise I’ll always take care of him.
“Why’re you crying!” Midge swatted me with a tissue. “Is it the hormones?”
Midge was even more excited than Daphne about my pregnancy. She’d only known for twelve hours, but somehow she’d already started a Pinterest board of possible outfits, baby names, and nursery decorating ideas.
“I’m nervous,” I admitted.
“Don’t be. You’re protecting your family. What’s that saying? Sunlight is the best disinfectant.” Midge smiled at me.
“Aw! My mom used to say that.”
Midge winked as she started working on my lip gloss. “Your mom was a smart lady.”
I nodded. “She was.”I hope you forgive me for going on Sugar Finder, Mom!
“And because she was a smart lady, she’ll understand why you made the choices you did. I bet she’s up in heaven right now, really proud of you.”
“I hope so.” My eyes pricked with tears again.
“Iknowso—okay, stop!” Midge forced another tissue on me. “I have to get you downstairs!” She finished with my makeup, insisted that I wear a body-hugging dress and sky-high heels, and then sent me on my way.
Olivia Jensen waited at the landing, clutching her signature enormous iced coffee. She was the one person on the staff that didn’t know the truth yet. We didn’t want her leaking information to the press or worse, running to Gene.
As always, the PR executive looked pulled together, her makeup perfect, a cute ivory adorning her curvy figure. “You look great—your skin’s glowing,” she said. “How are you feeling?”
“Nervous,” I admitted. “Was the network surprised we reached out?”
“They were thrilled, to tell you the truth. They want the inside scoop on how the family’s doing now that Gene’s in prison.” Olivia led me downstairs to the media room. The camera crew had arrived at four a.m. to get everything set up. Once again, the morning talk show hosts were going to interview me live from New York via a video chat. The same production crew and assistant had returned to the island to run things on our end.
We headed inside the media room, which was buzzing with the production crew. There were lights and cameras all over the place, barely organized chaos. “They’re going to want to know how Bryce is holding up. They will probably ask you about the fight with Felicia Jones, even though I asked them not to.”
“Ugh. Do I have to talk about that?” The fight seemed like it happened in another lifetime when the pretty heiress had been my biggest worry. My, how times had changed!
Olivia sighed. “They agreed to do this interview at the last second. I think we owe them the courtesy of answering their questions, don’t you?”
I grimaced. “I guess so.”
“Don’t frown—you’ll ruin your makeup.” Olivia patted my arm. “You can do this, Chloe. Just be yourself.”
I nodded, but inside I was dying. Olivia had no idea just how “myself” I was about to be!
The assistant hustled over to me. “Nice to see you again, Mrs. Windsor. Are you ready?”
Feeling sick, I nodded.
