False Pretenses Read Online Free PDF Page B

Leo if you don’t have any respect,” the woman ordered.
    Here we go. Alyssa’s hand crept to her hip almost without her guiding it there. She gave as much as she got, scraping her gaze over the woman’s figure, and let it be clearly written on her face that she was not impressed with what she saw. Red stained the woman’s cheeks, giving Alyssa the satisfaction she sought. “And who are you?”
    “Piper Corde,” was the harsh reply. “I’m Nathan’s younger sister, and I can spot a gold digger from a mile away.”
    “Oh, is that right?” Alyssa shot back and took a step toward her. Nathan cut her off and drew her back to his side.
    “Watch your mouth, Piper,” he growled. “I won’t allow you to talk to Alyssa that way.”
    “We all know it, Nathan, even if you don’t. Dad and Mom were saying—”
    “Piper Corde, you be quiet this instant,” Lydia snapped.
    A chill raised goose bumps on Alyssa’s arms. So they weren’t all as accepting as she’d thought. Now she remembered people loved to smile in one’s face while talking behind one’s back. She imagined as soon as she wasn’t around, Nathan’s parents would say the same thing to him that his sister wasn’t too afraid to point out. She didn’t doubt she would soon find herself back on a plane to the United States and the deal off. That wasn’t a bad thing if Trinity held up her side of the bargain. At least she could avoid temptation in the form of Nathan Corde.
    “Come on, Mom,” Piper insisted, not backing down for a second. “There’s only one thing someone like her wants.”
    Nathan opened his mouth to speak, but Alyssa held up an open palm in his face and shoved in front of him. “You know nothing about me, bitch!” She sucked in a deep breath and blew it out. “Please excuse my language, Mr. and Mrs. Corde, but I’m not going to stand here and let this girl think she can talk to me any kind of a way and accuse me of ensnaring Nathan for his money. You don’t know my background or where I come from.”
    Piper looked her up and down. “Where did you buy those clothes, Wal-Mart?”
    Alyssa was done talking. She sprang at Piper, who had the sense to fear for her life. Paling, she fell back a step, but before Alyssa could smack her, the barked command halted them both.
    “Enough!”
    The two of them turned toward Leo, and his high color and trembling hand on the top of his cane had Alyssa kicking herself for letting Piper rile her.
    “I will not have this bickering in my home,” Leo snapped. “My own daughter, whom I raised to be a well-mannered young woman, will not disrespect my guest. Is that clear, Piper?”
    Piper’s gaze lowered to the floor. “Sorry, Dad.”
    The argument fizzled faster than it had started, and when he’d made his point, Leo’s knees gave. In the blink of an eye, both Nathan and Aziz were at his sides to catch him. Alyssa clapped a hand over her mouth. She’d vowed not to let the man suffer more than he already was, and here she stood, exacerbating his ailment.
    “I’m so sorry, Mr. Corde.” She followed the procession to get him seated. “Are you okay?”
    The older man huffed and puffed in exhaustion. If the blood hadn’t drained from his face and the bony hands didn’t shake so hard, she might have thought he played up his sickness to gain control of his family. Something told her Leo Corde had commanded respect from those around him by his strength of character, not his weakness.
    “I’m fine, just fine,” he said, a tinge of impatience in his tone. “Call me Leo.”
    So he had given in to his daughter’s suggestion either way. None of it mattered. She would not be here for long or in Nathan’s scope after they returned to the United States. “Of course, Leo. Again, I’m sorry. If everyone will excuse me, I’d like to go to my room for a little while and get settled.”
    “I’ll go with you,” Nathan offered.
    She wanted to deny him, not ready to face the fact that they would