He Paid Me 1 Dollar For 10 Pounds, He Paid Her 100,000 For A Bag Chapter 03

He Paid Me 1 Dollar For 10 Pounds, He Paid Her 100,000 For A Bag Chapter 03

“Mrs. Halstead, your mother’s taken a turn for the worse!”

“She’s unresponsive; we can’t get her to wake up!”

“You need to get to the hospital right now!”

I threw on whatever clothes I could grab and ran downstairs.

I barely made it to the living room before Mallory blocked my path.

“Mrs. Halstead, did you pry open the fridge and eat everything inside last night?!”

The accusation came out of nowhere. I opened my mouth to answer.

Everett walked out of the kitchen in his pajamas.

He held up the remains of a roasted chicken and some fruit, all torn apart and half-eaten.

His eyes were ice. Pure disbelief.

“Tessa! Have you lost your mind?!”

“I told you to lose weight for you and for the baby!”

“You smile and nod to my face, then binge behind my back?!”

“I’m done. You’ve completely let me down.”

He sounded exhausted, disgusted, even—like he was the victim.

Everett hurled the ruined food into the trash.

“Maybe I was wrong.”

“I never should’ve bothered. I should’ve just let you destroy yourself.”

“If you eat yourself into an early grave, I’ll just find someone who actually takes care of herself.”

The words fell out of him like they cost nothing.

My chest seized. I scrambled to defend myself.

“Everett, I didn’t do it!”

“I didn’t eat anything!”

I shook my head, reaching for his hand.

Mallory stepped between us, shoving me back, an electronic scale in her hands.

“I knew you’d deny it, Mrs. Halstead…”

“So let’s let the scale speak for itself!”

She set the scale on the floor. The look on her face was pure smug confidence.

Something felt wrong. I was about to refuse.

Everett spoke coldly.

“Tessa, didn’t you just say you didn’t eat anything?”

“Then get on the scale and prove it.”

My mom was waiting. I didn’t have time for this. I shoved my phone into my pocket and stepped on the scale.

“Oh my God! One hundred seventy-seven pounds!”

“Mrs. Halstead, you’re still going to say you didn’t sneak food?!”

I looked down at the weight displayed on the scale and froze.

“That’s impossible…!”

“I didn’t eat anything!”

I looked up at Everett, desperation clawing at my throat.

“Everett, the hospital just called. My mom’s unresponsive.”

“They said she can’t wake up. They think she might not make it.”

“Let me go see her first. We can deal with the scale when I’m back…”

I didn’t get to finish.

Mallory cut in.

“Mrs. Halstead, this isn’t another one of your lies, is it?”

“Playing the pity card so we forget what you did?”

Tears burned in my eyes. I ignored Mallory.

I walked over and took Everett’s hand.

“Everett, you have to believe me!”

“I’d never lie about my mother dying!”

He stared at me for a long beat. Then he frowned and nodded.

“Let’s go.”

“I’ll drive.”

I managed something close to a smile and ran to the garage.

I reached for the passenger door.

Mallory stopped me.

“Mrs. Halstead, everyone in Mr. Halstead’s professional circle thinks I’m his wife.”

“If someone saw you up front, it’d raise questions.”

“It could cause problems for him…”

My body stiffened, and I looked at Everett.

He nodded calmly.

Something in me went numb. I opened the back door and got in.

We’d barely pulled out of the driveway when Mallory slid her seat all the way back.

The seat crushed into my knees. I looked up, and that’s when I saw it.

Everett and Mallory were wearing matching pajamas.

My nails bit into my palms. The hunger clawed at me again.

A vicious, hollow growl tore through my stomach, loud enough to fill the car.

Mallory pressed a hand to her mouth, muffling a laugh from the front seat.