Page 98 of Money Reigns

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That he’ll move on.

That this will burn out as fast as it started.

But then I remember the way helooks at me.

The way his voice goes low when we’re alone.

The way he makes me feel—

Seen.

Shaken.

Worshiped.

Andowned.

And the part that scares me most?

I like it.

God help me, I like it.

I get home a little after five.

Everything is just as I left it.

The lamp in the corner casts the same warm glow.

The scent of the vanilla candle I forgot to blow out this morning still lingers faintly in the air.

My shoes are by the door. My mail is on the counter. The hum of the fridge is soft and familiar.

It’s calm. Safe.

Mine.

But somehow, it doesn’t feel like mine anymore.

Like I left, and someone else moved in.

Someone who wears Prada.

And gets her own office and a new fancy phone.

I toe off my shoes and drop my bag by the couch. Move on autopilot.

Rent.I need to pay rent.

I pull up the app on my phone, expecting the usual anxiety to grip me as I check my balance, as I pray the page loads.

Only this time…

It loads instantly.

And the screen reads:

Paid.

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