Demanded by Him (Chosen by Him #7) Read Online Free Page A

with you—ever again.” I stepped back towards the door, bending at the knees, ready to run.
    Brandon leaned back on the edge of the dresser. “I want a meeting with Chase.”
    “No way, I’m not doing that.”
    “But you are. If you don’t, I’ll release those videos, plus everything else I have on lover boy’s company. You wouldn’t want me to ruin his life and yours now, would you?”
    Tears filled my eyes as anger raged through my veins. Fighting back was useless. With the click of a button he could destroy our lives. “Fine, but I’m not lying to him. I’ll set the meeting up, then you’re on your own.”
    “You don’t really get how this works, do you? Set the meeting up, brag about how wonderful everything is, and I can handle the rest. Once Chase Kerns opens up his wallet, that’s all I’m going to need.”
    * * * * *
    I was in over my head, but it was too late to turn back now. I drove around for hours, trying to figure out the perfect way to get rid of Brandon. He had more money than he had ever had before, and now he wanted more. He wanted to ruin my life and ruin the only chance I had at happiness.
    My mind raced and the same sick feeling had sat in my stomach for the last several days. I had been able to lie to Chase over the phone, but there was no way I was going to be able to face him tonight, especially if I needed somehow convince him to meet Brandon. I needed to think this through. The thought of even speaking to Chase made me nauseous. I knew he could tell I was being deceitful. I pulled out my phone and sent him a quick text, telling him I had a terrible headache and didn’t feel well. I knew that was the most clichéd excuse ever, but the truth was, I was sick. I tossed my phone back into my purse and braced myself for what was next.
    My knuckles turned a mixture of bright white with red splotches as I squeezed the steering wheel while I sat in the parking lot of my apartment complex. Every way I played out the scenario, Brandon won. I thought I knew him. I truly believed that once he had his money he was going to leave us alone. I believed he was going to disappear, just as fast as he’d reappeared in my life.
    Thirty-five thousand dollars was pocket change to someone like Chase, but to me, it was more than I could make in two years working part-time waitressing. That’s exactly what I was going to be doing once Brandon got me kicked out of school and Chase turned his back on me for lying. I’d made a terrible mistake.
    “Mistake…that’s exactly what I made,” I mumbled to myself. “I can tell Chase that Brandon fooled me. That he led me to believe something else and that I made a mistake in investing his money.” There, I had it all figured out. At least I did for the time being. I was content with my temporary solution.
    I replayed the conversation in my head over and over, just in case it ever came up. The story sounded perfect. I stood in front of my apartment door and fixed my hair, took a deep breath to calm my nerves, and walked in. Alyssa was sitting cross-legged on the couch reading on her tablet. “Hey Lys, what’s going on?”
    “Not much. How about you? Where have you been all day?” Alyssa barely looked up from her tablet as she swiped across the screen.
    “Work. You know, late date. Chase was giving me some pointers on things.” I faked a laugh. “And, you know, sometimes we just get carried away with each other.”
    “ Really?” Alyssa dragged out the word. “Funny, because I just got home about fifteen minutes ago from Velocity Capital and saw Chase there. He was in a meeting with Jake. You were nowhere near that office.” Alyssa pursed her lips as she tossed her tablet on the couch beside her and stared at me. “Where were you really?”
    “Okay, I was on campus. This new business class that I took when I dropped Chase’s is difficult. I’ve been so caught up with other things I’ve been letting my work slide.” I was shocked by how easily