Page 420 of Forbidden Billionaires: Vol. 1
"I know I don't understand. That's why I'm trying to talk to you. Why did you liquidate 20 million dollars worth of stocks?"
"I'm sorry. I can't tell you."Please believe me.
He laughed. "Penny." He stood up. "When you turned my parents down for money, I was so sure. I was so sure that what we had was real. That you weren't after me for my money."
"I'm not. And the fact that you weren't sure about me until I turned down your parents' money..." I tried to swallow my tears. "How could you not be sure? When I gave up everything to be with you? When I said yes to your proposal? James..."
"Then why the hell did you just steal 20 million dollars from me?!"
"I didn't steal it. My name was on your accounts."
"Jesus, Penny. And when did you realize I added you to all my accounts?"
"Today."
"Don't lie to me. You promised you wouldn't lie."
"Today, James. I didn't know until today."
He nodded. He seemed to believe me. Which was good, because it was the truth. "How long have you been planning this?"
"I haven't been planning anything, James. I had to transfer the money. I didn't have a choice. I was..."
"Stop lying! You promised you wouldn't lie to me," he repeated. He ran his hands through his hair. "Isabella tried to warn me. She said that you didn't love me. She always said you were after my money."
"Why would you believe her? Have the past two and a half years meant nothing to you?"
He shook his head. "Because she was right. You just wanted me for my money."
"I fell in love with you when you were my professor. You could have been broke. I still would have loved you, James."
"You don't love me. Stop lying to me. What's the point now? You got what you wanted. Just go."
"That's not true. I love you. All I want is to marry you. I'm not going anywhere."
He pulled out something from his pocket and tossed it at me. "You don't love me."
I unfolded the pictures. They were the ones of Tyler hugging me and holding my hand in the diner. Isabella was a fucking liar.
"You still love him." He sounded more hurt by this than the fact that he was missing 20 million dollars.
"I never loved Tyler. James, you know that. I love you. I've only ever loved you." I stood up, but he took a step back from me.
"Then why did you do it?!"
"I..." I didn't know what to say. I didn't have an answer. "Those pictures aren't what you think. I was upset when you were at your bachelor party. Melissa wasn't speaking to me. Tyler was just being a good friend. He went and asked Melissa to be his girlfriend right after this," I said and waved the pictures in the air. "Isabella took these and she's..."
"I know. I know that Isabella took these. She gave them to me a few days ago. And she told me I couldn't trust you. But I didn'tlisten. Because I trusted you. With everything. I was wrong." It looked like he was about to cry. I had never seen him like this.
I wanted to comfort him. I took another step toward him, but he took a step back. "You weren't wrong, James. You can trust me. Please just believe me. We're being blackmailed. I had to transfer the money so there wouldn't be pictures of us having sex leaked all over the internet."
He laughed and shook his head back and forth. "God, all you do is lie. You're leaving me, right? That's what this is?"
"No."
"And you needed money before you left me?" he said like he hadn't even heard what I had just said. "So you could run away with him?"
"What? No." I wanted to laugh. This whole thing was ridiculous. "I don't love Tyler. I don't want to be with Tyler. And we're certainly not running away together. James..."
