Put Your Diamonds Up! Read Online Free PDF Page B

boyfriend, Knox. Well, Christian. But everyone called him by his last name, Knox.
    And starting today—at this moment—that’s exactly how things were going to be.
    The electronic gates squeaked as I pulled onto the long, winding road that led to my parents’ estate. My mother, an ex-groupie who was reared in the hood, had a thing for European charm—which explained the cobblestone driveway, English garden, the massive Greek fountains, and the fifty-room French château we lived in.
    I pulled around to the servants’ entrance. I had two minutes left to make a mad dash for my room. I eased in through the back door, skipped the elevator, tiptoed up the back stairs—taking two at a time—and made it to my room with a minute to spare.
    My heart revved like a crackhead passing a collection plate. The last thing I needed was my mother, Logan Montgomery, known as Shakeesha Gatling when she doesn’t take her medicine, walking up on me.
    I leaned against the back of my closed door and my eyes scanned my suite, from the sitting area to the king-size canopy, to the crystal chandelier, to the balcony overlooking the very cliff my mother threatened to throw me off of if she ever caught me sneaking in the house again.
    I ran over to my bed, pulled the sheets back, dived onto the mattress, and rolled from one side to the other and back again. I hopped up, flung off my clothes—leaving on my panties and bra—and walked toward the bathroom.
    â€œRich Gabrielle Montgomery.”
    I froze.
    My heart fell out of my chest and my stomach went right behind it.
    My mother’s voice rose again. “I suggest you turn around slowly because any sudden moves will not work out for you.”
    Dear God . . .
    I turned around and there she was—her face lit up on my computer screen!
    What kind of . . .
    I shifted my eyes from side to side. Was she serious? Maybe I was dreaming. Yeah, that’s it. So I turned and took a step toward the bathroom. “I know you didn’t just give me your back!”
    Freeze!
    I can’t believe this! I had a minute to spare. What happened to my minute to spare? Was she doing digital rounds now? Why was she on my computer screen? I swear this woman was put on this Earth to drive me crazy!
    Breathe. Breathe.
    Okay. Okay... but breathe.
    Dang!
    How long has she been watching me? Has she been on my computer all night? Spying on me. Jesus! And to think when I went to confession the Father said prayer works. Yeah, right!
    I pushed a plastic smile on my face and turned back toward the computer screen. “Ma, I would never disrespect you like that.” At least not to your face . “But, umm, why are you on my computer?” I squinted. “Did you hack my system? Break and enter into my Skype account? Really, Ma, who does that? I thought your life of crime was over.”
    â€œNo, it’s not,” she said evenly. “I have one more murder to commit.”
    I swallowed. Hard. A vision of me rolling down the cliff to my death danced before my eyes and I did all I could to keep my knees from buckling. “I have to get to school.”
    â€œNo. You have to stand right there. And you better not. Move. An inch.”
    A few wobbly seconds later, she was off of my computer screen and in my room, standing toe-to-toe with me. At any moment, I expected her to toss up gang signs and spit razor blades out of her mouth.
    I was careful not to breathe too hard—because whenever she was this pissed off, everything that I did was a problem, including breathing. So I took light sips of air and smiled as I looked into her brown eyes.
    Her glare shot a thousand bullets into me as she pushed an index finger into my forehead, forcing my neck to jerk with every move. “Where. Have. You. Been?”
    Think. Okay, I got it. I’ll cop to the truth. Yeah, that’s it, she always tells me that if I tell her the truth she will be understanding.
    â€œI