Page 77 of Love Me Not

“Ican’t,” I whispered.“I can’t say any of those things, Lux.”

Her eyes flashed.

“Your move, Angel.Tell me what you want to do about it.”

“I—”

A knock at the door had us freezing.

“Juliette, you left your phone in the kitchen.Your brother called you like three times.I think it’s urgent.”Gina’s voice sounded worried.

I paused, my eyes locking with Lux’s.My brother never called me, and given what happened last time, it was even more unlikely that he was reaching out just to chat.

“A rain check, then,” she said and sidestepped so I could force my unstable legs to carry me to the door and open it, quickly taking my phone from Gina.

My heart dropped when I saw the message.

Lucas

Aunt Kath had a heart attack.In the hospital now.

Chapter21

Juliette

Ilooked down at my aunt, who was staring up at me with a look of disgust.

“Only decides to show up when I’m on my deathbed,” she snapped.Her blonde hair was pulled into a messy bun on the top of her head, and even though she had tried to paint her face with heavy makeup, the tiredness was seeping through.

Aunt Kathy.

She had obviously been through a lot, but I wouldn’t let it sway me.I wasn’t the teenager she’d pushed out of her house.I might have let her live in peace for the sake of my brother, but Jesus, did I hate the woman in front of me.

Just like Lux’s mom, she was rotten inside and out.

I turned to look at Lucas, who had his eyes trained on the floor.

“If you don’t want me here, I can leave.”I readied to do just that, but Lucas grabbed my wrist.

“I called you for a reason,” he said, still not looking at me.Then, so softly, “Insurance doesn’t cover everything.”

I stood there, understanding slowly washing over me.Then hurt.Then disbelief.

“You won’t take my money for college, but you’ll call me to saveher.”

He saw what she did to me, and no doubt she hadn’t been a saint to him either.Why was he taking her side on this?

“As I understand, you’ve come into a large sum of money,” she blurted out, her eyes narrowing at me.“Questionablemoney.”

My head snapped back to Lucas.

“What did you tell her?”

He opened his mouth, but she was faster.“That you spread your legs for it.”

My body deflated.I couldn’t believe Lucas had really said that.I regretted a lot of things, but meeting Lux, even in a situation where I was selling my body for money, wasn’t something I’d allow myself to feel shame for anymore.

I turned without a word, ready to walk out, when her voice followed me.

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