Page 10 of The Billionaire's Vow

She hesitated for a moment, knowing exactly how this was going to go.Then, with a sigh of resignation, she swiped to answer.

“Hi, Mom.What’s up?”

“Hey, darling!”her mother’s voice cooed over the line.“What are you doing?”

Giselle resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

“I’m fine.Working.”

Her mother giggled, the sound light and practiced.“Oh, dear.You work too many hours, darling.Why don’t you ever relax and enjoy life?”

Giselle clenched her jaw.

Relax?Enjoy life?

Maybe because she was too busy making sure her mother’s reckless spending habits didn’t land her in financial ruin.Maybe because she was always the one people turned to when they needed saving from themselves.

And she knew—beyond a shadow of a doubt—that this conversation wasn’t about checking in on her well-being.

It never was.

“How much do you need?”she asked, cutting straight to the inevitable request.

There was a small, scandalized gasp on the other end.“Why would you assume I need money?”her mother asked, an exaggerated lilt in her tone, as if she were deeply offended.

Giselle pinched the bridge of her nose.

Here we go.

“I might just want to talk with my lovely daughter,” her mother continued.

Giselle exhaled through her nose.“Is that it?You just wanted to touch base with me and see how I’m doing?”

“Of course, dear!”her mother chirped.

And then…

Silence.

A long, drawn-out pause that stretched between them, thick with unspoken words.

Giselle didn’t fill it.

She knew what was coming.

She waited, staring blankly at the ceiling, fingers tapping against the back of her phone as she counted down the seconds before—

“Well,” her mother finally said, her voice taking on that faux-sheepish tone, “since you brought it up… I think I might be a bit short on the funds needed for my credit card bill this month.”

Giselle’s eyes snapped shut, frustration curling through her like a slow burn.

Of course.

Her mother never thought she needed help but, the truth was, she always needed help.

“Any chance you have some extra cash you could give your dear mother?”

Giselle’s fingers curled into a fist.