Indebted: Part Three (Series Finale): The Virgin & The Bad-Boy Billionaire (A BWWM Billionaire Romance) Read Online Free PDF
Author: Sadie Black
rambling nonsense makes my brain feel like it’s being hammered with hot nails. Great. And now, all I can do is sit back and wait.
Chapter Three
Swishing back and forth, I admire the way my floor length graduation gown hangs from my shoulders. “You look gorgeous, Kendra! Aren’t you glad you started wearing make-up? You look like a model, seriously.” Brianna beams over my shoulder. The tension that was swirling around us at the diner seems to have evaporated. It reminds me of when we were teenagers, and we would have epic blow-outs over something as stupid as who should win America’s Top Model that season. Then, less than a day later we would check our egos and move on as though we’d never spoken a bad word to each other in our entire lives.
“Alright, how about you stand over by the bench under the tree there, Kendra? I just want to get a couple of shots while the lighting is still good.” Issaiah directs me, pointing at the massive weeping willow, perfectly manicured to hang over the bench like a humble monk hanging his head in prayer.
I know that my brother is proud of me, but all the photos are getting a bit tiring. He’s had me posing near every landmark on campus for an hour now. I’d be embarrassed if every other family of grad students weren’t doing the exact same thing.
“Ok, but this is the last set,” I wait for the cute couple posing with frozen kisses to slide out of the way.
They look relieved to have a reason to stop obliging the man behind the camera ordering them around like they’re on a magazine cover shoot. “Ok, great! That’s good. Now give me a big smile. No, bigger smile Hallie. Ok, great! But now try to think of something that makes you super happy, that way your eyes will sparkle. Now Jake, put your arm around Hallie, perfect…”
Luckily, Issaiah isn’t quite that controlling. After a few flashes of the camera, I’m bored with posing and pull Brianna into the shot with me. Standing together with fake smiles, we pose for a photo that will capture this moment in time until it becomes our only memories of it.
“Issaiah, I hate to cut this short, but I’ve got to get going,” my brother’s flash happy camera clicking grinds to a halt. “We have to get sorted out for the ceremony in fifteen minutes. You guys should all probably get seated anyway,” I tell my three brother’s and their wives. Fortunately, none of them brought their children. Not that they aren’t adorable, but sitting quietly through a three-hour ceremony isn’t what toddlers and newborns are known for. Truth be told, I’m not looking forward to sitting through it, and I’m the one crossing the stage.
You’d think that with the last name Cole, I would be one of the first to have my diploma clutched in my sweaty palm. Yet, after forty minutes, I’m just now standing with the rest of my row.
Scanning the crowd, I search row by row for my family now that I don’t have a hundred square-top hats blocking my view. A wall of unfamiliar faces stare back from the crowd. It’s a mishmash of expressions facing me, some look proud, others bored, more than a few are even sleeping. Finally, I spot my family off to the side. Winnie is waving to me enthusiastically while Issaiah looks like he’s trying to figure out how to put a lens on his camera that will fold the distance between us.
The long line in front of me slowly starts to shrink as my mind wanders back to Matthew. I wish he were here. I sigh, self-pity seeping through me. You have no one to blame but yourself for that! I try to shake the fleeting thoughts from my mind. Today is about graduation, not Matthew Blackwell. Stay in the present. Not wallow about my mistakes in the recent past or worry about the future.
Gazing back over the crowd, I jump, squinting my eyes to get a better look. I can’t be sure from this distance, but I’m almost certain that I see Matthew sitting toward the rear
Chapter Three
Swishing back and forth, I admire the way my floor length graduation gown hangs from my shoulders. “You look gorgeous, Kendra! Aren’t you glad you started wearing make-up? You look like a model, seriously.” Brianna beams over my shoulder. The tension that was swirling around us at the diner seems to have evaporated. It reminds me of when we were teenagers, and we would have epic blow-outs over something as stupid as who should win America’s Top Model that season. Then, less than a day later we would check our egos and move on as though we’d never spoken a bad word to each other in our entire lives.
“Alright, how about you stand over by the bench under the tree there, Kendra? I just want to get a couple of shots while the lighting is still good.” Issaiah directs me, pointing at the massive weeping willow, perfectly manicured to hang over the bench like a humble monk hanging his head in prayer.
I know that my brother is proud of me, but all the photos are getting a bit tiring. He’s had me posing near every landmark on campus for an hour now. I’d be embarrassed if every other family of grad students weren’t doing the exact same thing.
“Ok, but this is the last set,” I wait for the cute couple posing with frozen kisses to slide out of the way.
They look relieved to have a reason to stop obliging the man behind the camera ordering them around like they’re on a magazine cover shoot. “Ok, great! That’s good. Now give me a big smile. No, bigger smile Hallie. Ok, great! But now try to think of something that makes you super happy, that way your eyes will sparkle. Now Jake, put your arm around Hallie, perfect…”
Luckily, Issaiah isn’t quite that controlling. After a few flashes of the camera, I’m bored with posing and pull Brianna into the shot with me. Standing together with fake smiles, we pose for a photo that will capture this moment in time until it becomes our only memories of it.
“Issaiah, I hate to cut this short, but I’ve got to get going,” my brother’s flash happy camera clicking grinds to a halt. “We have to get sorted out for the ceremony in fifteen minutes. You guys should all probably get seated anyway,” I tell my three brother’s and their wives. Fortunately, none of them brought their children. Not that they aren’t adorable, but sitting quietly through a three-hour ceremony isn’t what toddlers and newborns are known for. Truth be told, I’m not looking forward to sitting through it, and I’m the one crossing the stage.
You’d think that with the last name Cole, I would be one of the first to have my diploma clutched in my sweaty palm. Yet, after forty minutes, I’m just now standing with the rest of my row.
Scanning the crowd, I search row by row for my family now that I don’t have a hundred square-top hats blocking my view. A wall of unfamiliar faces stare back from the crowd. It’s a mishmash of expressions facing me, some look proud, others bored, more than a few are even sleeping. Finally, I spot my family off to the side. Winnie is waving to me enthusiastically while Issaiah looks like he’s trying to figure out how to put a lens on his camera that will fold the distance between us.
The long line in front of me slowly starts to shrink as my mind wanders back to Matthew. I wish he were here. I sigh, self-pity seeping through me. You have no one to blame but yourself for that! I try to shake the fleeting thoughts from my mind. Today is about graduation, not Matthew Blackwell. Stay in the present. Not wallow about my mistakes in the recent past or worry about the future.
Gazing back over the crowd, I jump, squinting my eyes to get a better look. I can’t be sure from this distance, but I’m almost certain that I see Matthew sitting toward the rear
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