Page 70 of Built to Last

“You don’t love anyone but yourself,” Reid replies, but he seems calmer now.

“No one else needs to know this.” Britta shrugs it off and settles her designer bag over her elbow. “Now, if you choose to work with me, I think you’ll find your image rehabbed and all doors open to you within a year or so. Of course, you’ll need to quit the show you’re working on right now. I can’t have my husband working with his former mistress.”

Reid drops my hand. “I’m not going to marry you.”

She gives him a chilly smile. “Of course you are, and the truth of the matter is this is the best course of action for you as well. Your brother will fuck up again, and you’ll lose it all.”

“We lost it all because of you.” His eyes narrow, and he moves toward her.

“Hey, babe. If we’re going to murder her, we should do it when there aren’t a bunch of photographers she hired downstairs.” I’m pretty sure this is what they mean by being the voice of reason. “We should wait until we have excellent alibis and she doesn’t see it coming. I would say poison, but we all know she doesn’t eat. Maybe we could sit a Birkin bag out on a frozen lake and then oops, she falls through the ice.”

“I am unamused by you,” she says, her eyes rolling before she looks back to Reid. “I suppose you have to decide between your ordinary-looking contractor person and the brother you spent your whole life protecting. Also, you should know I intend to tell the press I’m pregnant.”

“You’re pregnant? Whose baby is it?” Reid asks, sounding shocked for the first time.

I’m not. I know this play. “She’s not pregnant. She’ll tearfully put out a statement in a couple of months that she lost the baby and either the story will be that her husband is by her side or he ran off with the help. Either way she gains sympathy, and that makes me wonder. What are you trying to hide?”

For the first time Britta looks slightly unsettled. “I’m not hiding anything. I’m simply done waiting. I’ve always known Reid and I are endgame, as you Americans like to call it. Think about it, Reid. It’s your choice. It always has been, and you always come back to me. Hooper, you should think about that. Did you know he made love to me in Ralavia? He left that part out, didn’t he?”

“Yes, he did, because it’s not true. Now you should leave, and you’ll have our answer soon.” The only reason I don’t throw her out on her skinny ass is I think Reid needs some time to process.

“Your answer means nothing.” Britta turns, and her heels click along the floor. “Oh, look. Here’s sweet Jeremiah. He looks a bit haunted. I wonder how he will deal with the whole world knowing his secret.”

She walks past Jeremiah, who is wearing last night’s clothes and looks stark white.

“What did she want? We can sell the penthouse. At least my part.” Jeremiah seems to be deep into the bargaining state, and I wonder how long he’s been there. Years, it seems.

“Jer, I love you. I can’t. I can’t marry her. I love Harper,” Reid says, his voice shaking. “I’m so sorry.”

Jeremiah stops, and his shoulders relax. “You love Harper? You really love her?”

Reid nods. “Yeah. Though now that she sees how bad my baggage is I don’t know that she’ll think I’m a good bet.”

He loves me? It’s stupid how those words wash away all the anxiety of the last few minutes. We can get through this if he loves me. I might be able to get through anything if he loves me. “Yeah, I’m bad at gambling, so you’re good. I mean it, babe. I can walk by a slot machine and it never pays off again. Did I mention sarcasm is also how I handle strong emotion since I love you, too.”

Jeremiah tears up. “I’m so happy to hear that. I can’t tell you. I’m happy for you.”

He hugs his brother and then me. I hold him close. “How was your meeting?”

He backs up and gives me a weary smile. “Well, I spent most of the night in a coffee shop with my sponsor talking about how to keep my sobriety.”

“Jer,” Reid begins.

Jeremiah waves him off. “She figured it out. Besides, she’s probably going to be my sister-in-law. Let me think for a couple of hours.”

Reid nods. “Of course.”

“Or we can sic Ivy and Heath on her and figure out what she’s trying to cover up.” It is obvious to me that the Dorsey brothers aren’t big on conspiracy theories. Lucky for them I’m pretty good at them. “Think about it. She doesn’t love you. She’s not really pregnant. She said it herself. She needs to change the narrative.”

“She said I could change the narrative,” Reid points out.

“No. I think Harper’s right.” Jeremiah paces while he considers the situation. “She normally wants money or she wants you to short term look like you’re back together. She doesn’t have feelings for you beyond using you. So why would she be willing to tie herself to this family?”

“She’s jealous of Harper,” Reid offers.

He is a beautiful man, but I don’t see it. “She’s the one who needs to cover something, and the tape gave her the idea she needed. The fact that she lost it and is still pushing means she’s desperate. If she’s desperate, then we can use it against her. We need to figure out what she’s hiding, and Ivy is our best bet. She knows people who can get pretty much anywhere on the web. I would like to do a deep dive into Britta’s life for the last six months. If we can get leverage to make her drop whatever hold she has on you…”

Jeremiah’s jaw squares. “You should know…”

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