Page 64 of Diamond in the Rough (The Diamond Trilogy 1)
In the end all my worry and deliberation is for nothing.
He may not be a danger to me, but he’s definitely a danger to my sister. I would do anything for her. Including walk away from the captor that I love.
“Scoot over,” I say, and I see the relief in her dark blue eyes.
I climb down the drain in my expensive designer dress and ballet flats, slipping only once. We make it to the street where we fit into the crowd of couples and young mothers. We are two fashionable sisters exploring Paris—one of us carrying priceless diamonds, the other with absolutely nothing in her pockets, not a single euro.
By the time we are three blocks away, I’m sure we won’t be found.
Ten blocks away, and my heart begins to hurt.
“London,” I say, my heart still pounding from fear and grief.
“I know. It’s fucking crazy. I got your messages, by the way.”
“Then why didn’t you respond?”
“It’s a long story. And I didn’t get them until after you were in France. Where did you go? I thought you’d try the embassy or something, but you disappeared.”
Disappeared. That’s one word for being kidnapped and held in a church’s underground prison. “It’s a long story, but first tell me what happened to you. Why did you stop replying?”
She takes my hand, and I squeeze back, still so relieved to have found her, safe and whole. “Mine is a long story too.”
“Let me start it for you: Holly, I have really expensive diamonds.”
“You know about that?” Her eyes twinkle. She shows me her left hand and flips a gold band around. The largest diamond I’ve seen in real life sparkles from the simple setting. “I’m engaged.”
“What?”
She snorts. “Not really. It’s just the most convenient way to keep it where people don’t ask questions. Well, they do ask questions, but I’ve made up someone tall, dark, and handsome. He’s a stock broker in New York. I can’t settle on a good name for him, though.”
We pass a shop with expensive china, its lights off. The front door says sur rendez-vous uniquement and underneath by appointment only. I pull my sister into the empty doorway of the store. “This is serious. Did you steal that?”
“Of course not. Someone gave it to me.”
Lord. “I know you found the diamonds. I know Elijah stashed them on you.”
Her expression falls. “Don’t be angry at me.”
“Why would I be angry?”
“Because when I saw them—I wanted to keep them. That’s why I went dark. That’s why I stopped responding to you. It was the only way to keep the money.”
“God, London. It’s not that simple. They’re not going to let it go. There are men after you. Not only Elijah. They want them back.”
She twists the ring backwards again. Her fingers curl around the stone. “They’re mine.”
“They’re not.”
She closes her eyes. “Holly, I didn’t want to tell you this, but I got mixed up with some bad people. I need the money.”
Her fear shimmers in the air around us, and my heart clenches. I wrap her in my arms. “It’s okay. We’ll figure it out together now.”
“You won’t leave me?” She looks impossibly young—younger than me, right now.
She went on the run with millions of dollars in diamonds. That kind of hiding lasts forever. She’ll never be free to post her photo online. I’ll never be able to publish another book. “Do you know what you’re asking of me, London?”
Everything. She’s asking for everything that I am.
“I’m sorry.” She looks stricken. And frightened.
My sister. She’s my sister. “Of course I won’t leave you,” I tell her, feeling as if I’ve just jumped off a cliff. I’m falling into the rocks headfirst, clutching diamonds in my fist.
* * *
Thank you for reading DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH! I hope you loved Elijah and Holly’s story. Find out what happens when he catches her again in GOLD MINE.
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Liam North got custody of the violin prodigy six years ago. She’s all grown up now, but he still treats her like a child. No matter how much he wants her.
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“Swoon-worthy, forbidden, and sexy, Liam North is my new obsession.”
– New York Times bestselling author Claire Contreras
Keep reading for an excerpt from OVERTURE…
* * *
Rest, Liam told me.
He’s right about a lot of things. Maybe he’s right about this. I climb onto the cool pink sheets, hoping that a nap will suddenly make me content with this quiet little life.
Even though I know it won’t.
Besides, I’m too wired to actually sleep. The white lace coverlet is both delicate and comfy. It’s actually what I would have picked out for myself, except I didn’t pick it out. I’ve been incapable of picking anything, of choosing anything, of deciding anything as part of some deep-seated fear that I’ll be abandoned.
