Chapter 37

RULE #36: DON'T LET THEM SHAME YOU.

Presh

I couldn't sleep all night. Visions of what happened in the throne room play on repeat in my mind. Kissing Nandi… which worked like a charm, like she said it would. He couldn't stay away the second he saw her hands on me.

And walking away from him was pure torture. But I had to do it. Although I spent the rest of my night tossing and turning, wanting to throw caution to the wind and phone him. I could go to his house, let him take me to bed, and pretend that consequences didn't exist and there was no risk of me being hurt.

But then it's only a matter of time before Bandi shows up again and I'm pushed aside, ignored and forgotten. What kind of future did I really have with Musa like this? He would never commit, never marry me. We couldn't live together or plan our lives, when he knew he was keeping me a dirty secret under his desk.

I deserve better. I know that to be true, but it's still hard to convince my heart, which seems to think the only solution to this problem is to ignore my convictions and crawl back to him.

Stupid heart.

I'm lying in bed, staring at the photo Lucky sent me a few days ago of me and Musa at the club on opening night, when I hear a car door slam shut out front. Ma and Amahle are already home, so something about this seems off.

Then I hear the ominous sound of my name being called by the one person I would least expect.

"Precious, get out here!" my father bellows from outside my cottage, and I freeze.

What the fuck?