Zoya Hart has been eluding her gold-digging stepmother for the last few years. Knowing that this woman will do anything to gain control of her and her late father's company, Zoya finds herself hiding out on a farm. Now, with a PI on her trail, Zoya'...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Marion couldn't help the gleeful smile that made her cheekbones hurt. One disappointing PI after another, and just when her stay of execution was going to run out, she received the text.
Dove is in Arkadia. 1946 Maple Drive.
Had the little brat been under her nose all this time? She didn't know whether to think the girl stupid or cunning.
The timing couldn't have been better. Her bank account had seen better days; she was practicing wasting away with only a half a million left. Sure, to some it was a comfortable amount, but not with the lifestyle she'd grown accustomed too. Fashion week in Paris, skiing in Chamonix Mt Blanc, lounging poolside in the Hamptons—all expensive luxuries she reveled in.
She was growing weary of having to please men to get what she wanted. David St. Clair was meant to be the last. He'd been an attentive husband. Handsome. Richer than sin and barely any family to bequeath his fortune. Until the cancer diagnosis. When she suggested to send Dove away to a school that dealt with problem children, he started to turn his back on her.
God, the man would've been perfect, if not for that little oddball. All her little tantrums and oddities, the incessant need for order, as if she was some anal school marm. God forbid a book not be alphabetized, or a pink shirt with the yellow ones. After he got sick, it was even worse how she monopolized his time and sat at his bedside every waking moment. And, of course, David encouraged it. That's the part she hated the most. The kid always came first.
And now, the end was in sight. Her plan falling miraculously into place. Perhaps God really was smiling down on her, and she'd soon get all that was rightfully hers. All she had to do was take it.
The car rolled to a stop, and Mack got out first to case the place, while Rocco opened her door. The stench of manure carried on the breeze from the cow field down the road. The simple country house was a far cry from what the little darling grew up with. Landry's report had revealed she'd been shacking up with man fresh out of prison! David would surely roll in his grave with the knowledge of his perfect little princess living with a thug.
No car in the drive, and the curtains in the front window pulled back for anyone to take a look-see. Just as well. It would give her time to pull herself together because her nerves were on edge.
"Mack, take the car and stash it out back."
She choked back a laugh. After all this time, the wait had been worth it. Other than money, maintaining the appearance of the loving, caring step-mother was crucial. Marion needed people to think that she only wanted what was best for the girl. Running away and getting involved with a felon proved she wasn't capable or stable enough to run the company. Fiona definitely could not counteract that. It couldn't have been more perfect if she'd planned it. A damaged girl making bad decisions. Everyone would applaud her for saving Dove from some criminal who wanted to drain the St. Clair's dry.
