Fallen Heirs : A Dark High School Bully Romance (Windsor Academy Book 3)

by Laura Lee

  Ainsley shrugs. “My best guess is because that girl is a walking, talking reminder of what Bentley considers his greatest mistake. He probably thought he’d never see her face again, and he was perfectly okay with that.”

  I cup a hand over my mouth. “Oh, God. Poor Bent.”

  Ainsley snorts. “If you’re going to feel sorry for someone, don’t leave out Sydney Carrington. Because I have a feeling, Bentley is not going to handle this very well.”

  Oh, fuck. I can just imagine. I’ve witnessed Bentley’s mean streak on a few occasions now, and I would not want to be on the receiving end of it. Based on his reaction just now, I’d say he’s leaning in that direction.

  “Shit,” I mutter.

  “Yeah...” Ainsley agrees. “As in a shitshow is about to begin. I suppose it was only a matter of time before the drama got stirred up again. This is Windsor, after all.”

  Lovely. Just what we all need: More drama.

  EPILOGUE

  JAZZ

  “Hello?”

  “Hello. Is this Jasmine Callahan?”

  “This is she.” Until my name change is processed, anyway. “Who’s calling?”

  “My name is Bryant Jacoby. Your father hired me to manage the estate assets. He asked me to reach out to you in the event of his demise.”

  “Oh.” I frown in confusion. I thought the feds seized all of Charles’ assets. “What can I do for you, Mr. Jacoby?”

  He clears his throat. “Yes... well, I need you to come into the office at your earliest convenience to sign some paperwork.”

  Now, I’m really baffled. “What paperwork?”

  Kingston walks through the front door as I’m pacing the living room. Who are you talking to? he mouths.

  “I’m sorry, Mr. Jacoby, could you please hold on a moment?”

  “Yes, of course.”

  I press the mute button on my phone to answer Kingston’s question. “Charles’ attorney. He says he needs me to sign some papers for the estate.”

  Kingston looks just as confused as I am. “Put him on speaker.”

  I take the call off mute and press the speaker button as Kingston and I sit on the couch. “Okay, I’m back. Now, what were you saying about some paperwork?”

  “For the estate,” he repeats. “To disburse funds to you, I need your signature on several documents.”

  I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Mr. Jacoby, I’m going to be frank. I have no clue what you’re talking about. I’m assuming you heard about my father’s transgressions prior to his death?”

  “Well... yes, of course,” he sputters.

  “So, then perhaps you can understand my confusion. It’s my understanding all of Charles Callahan’s assets have been frozen until they can figure out which funds were acquired legally—if any—and restitution has been made.”

  “Yes, that’s correct. But I’m not referring to his estate, Miss Callahan. I’m referring to your mother’s. Mahalia Rivera was your mother, was she not?”

  “Yes...” I stretch the word out. “But she didn’t have any assets. I was a joint owner on her only bank account, and she had less than a hundred dollars to her name when she died.”

  Mr. Jacoby clears his throat, a little louder this time. “Miss Callahan, I believe you’re mistaken. Your mother is the sole owner of several large investment accounts, and she listed you as the sole beneficiary of those accounts. Combined, her total estate is currently valued at two hundred and sixty-two million dollars, give or take.”

  “What?!” Now it’s my turn to sputter. “How is that possible?”

  Kingston’s eyes widen. “Mr. Jacoby, my name is Kingston Davenport. I’m sitting here with Jazz... uh, Jasmine. May I ask you a few questions?”

  “Miss Callahan, is it okay to speak freely in front of Mr. Davenport?” he asks.

  “Yes, anything,” I confirm.

  “In that case... please proceed, Mr. Davenport.”

  “When were these investment accounts originally opened?”

  It sounds like the attorney is flipping through some papers. “Throughout a two-year window, approximately sixteen to eighteen years ago. They were each opened with exactly ten million dollars and have grown substantially over the years since.”

  “Hold on again, please.” Kingston presses the mute button and turns to me. “He was hiding assets in her name. If she did sign anything to open those accounts, it might have been under duress, or she didn’t know what she was signing. If she didn’t know those accounts existed, Charles would’ve still had full access to them to do anything he pleased, as long as he did it online.” Kingston unmutes the call. “Can you tell us if any funds were added over the years?”

  “Yes. There were many occurrences. I have quarterly statements from the last seven years. You’re welcome to review them when you come in to sign the appropriate paperwork.”

  “Mr. Jacoby, I’ll have to call you back.”

  “But—”

  I end the call before he has a chance to finish his sentence.

  “That’s blood money, Kingston. I don’t want anything to do with it. Why would he leave that money to me?”

  “I think in his own fucked up way, he loved you and to Charles, money talks. Maybe this was his way of telling you that.”

  “I don’t want his dirty money!”

  “Now, hold up a sec,” he says. “What else are you going to do? Hand it over to the feds?”

  “That’s exactly what I’m going to do!” I throw my hands up. “Do you have another suggestion?”

  He smiles. “I do.”

  “What?”

  “You can donate it to charities... victims of sex trafficking. Or we can start a new foundation. Think of what good all that money can do, Jazz. Plus, it’d be one helluva fuck you to Charles.”

  “I don’t know...”

  Kingston grabs my hand. “Just think about it, okay? If you take the money, you can ensure it goes directly to victims at the hands of people like our fathers. Hell, maybe even our fathers directly. Those women—and some men—can get therapy, have help transitioning back into society. It could even fund private organizations that hunt and dismantle trafficking rings. There’s a lot that money can do. Will you at least consider it?”

  I think about it for a moment. “Okay.”

  “Okay, you’ll consider it?”

  I shake my head. “No. Okay, I’ll do it. But you have to help me find reputable places for it to go. I want to make sure every dime is given directly to victims in some way.”

  “I’ll be with you every step of the way, Jazz.”

  “Well, I guess I should call him back and set an appointment to sign those papers, huh?”

  Kingston picks up my phone and hands it to me. “And as soon as you’re done, we’ll start researching charities.”

  I nod. “Deal.”

  ***

  “What do you think, kiddo?” Kingston sets Belle down inside her new room and watches as she jumps onto her new bed.

  “I love it!” she squeals. “It’s all mine?”

  I smile. “All yours, sweetheart. Anytime your daddy says you can have a sleepover, this is where you’ll stay.”

  Belle runs around her room, checking everything out. “I wish I could live here forever!”

  I tilt my head to the side. “But wouldn’t you miss your daddy?”

  Belle looks away and shrugs. “I dunno. Daddy isn’t very nice, and now Monica’s gone.”

  “What do you mean, Monica’s gone? When did that happen?” I take a seat on the oversized pink chair in the corner of her room. “Come sit with me, sweetheart, and tell me what happened.”

  Belle climbs onto my lap. “I heard Monica yellin’ at him about kissin’ the neighbor lady. She never came home from work the other day, and Daddy says she’s not comin’ back ever.”

  I sigh. I knew it was only a matter of time before Jerome screwed up that relationship. “I’m sorry, honey. If you ever need to talk about it, we can FaceTime any time you want,
day or night, okay?”

  She frowns. “Do I hafta go back? Can’t I just live with you and Kingston here at the beach?”

  I give her a sad smile. “Oh, honey, I wish it were that easy.”

  “Hey, princess.” Kingston kneels in front of us and takes Belle’s hand. “If we could make it happen so you could live with us all the time, would you want that? You’d have to switch schools and everything.”

  I widen my eyes, giving Kingston a what the hell are you doing? look. The attorney told us only a week ago that it’ll be a long, drawn-out process.

  “Yes!” Belle nods. “My teacher is a meanie-butt anyway, so I don’t care if I hafta get a new one.”

  Kingston laughs as he kisses Belle on the forehead and does the same to mine. “I’ll be back in a little while, okay? I have to run an errand.”

  I eye him with suspicion. “What kind of errand?”

  He winks. “It’s a surprise.”

  When Kingston returns several hours later, Belle is sleeping on the couch, with Ainsley snoring lightly beside her. We built sandcastles and played on the beach with Ainsley for a while before the three of us came inside and had a princess movie marathon. Neither one of them made it halfway through the first movie before they crashed.

  “Hey,” I whisper, not wanting to wake the girls.

  “Hey,” he whispers back. “Come talk to me out on the back deck.”

  I carefully extricate myself from Belle’s grip and meet Kingston outside.

  “Come sit with me, baby.” He pats the empty spot on the lounger.

  I settle between Kingston’s spread legs and lie back on his chest. The sun already set, so we listen to the waves crashing against the shore for a few moments before he speaks.

  “So... I did a thing.”

  I twist around to face him. “What kind of thing?”

  “I went to see Jerome.”

  “What? Why?”

  “After what Belle said earlier... I thought about something. I’m surprised it didn’t cross my mind earlier, but I had a hunch, and I wanted to see if I was right.”

  “About what?”

  “To see if Belle’s father was interested in a private custody negotiation.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “We’ve been paying him for our weekly visits with her, right?”

  “You’ve been paying him,” I correct.

  Kingston pinches my side. “As I said, we’ve been paying him for weekly visits, right? So it got me thinking. What if he took one lump sum payment, and we’d get to have her every day?”

  “I’m not following, Kingston.”

  “I talked to Sandra on the drive. She confirmed that if Jerome forfeited his parental rights, as Belle’s only remaining relative, you could petition to be her legal guardian. Now that you’re a legal adult, and you have financial and home stability, there’s no reason the court should deny your request. Sandra said she could file an emergency petition to have temporary custody awarded to us while all the legal stuff is processed.”

  “Are you serious?” I turn around, wrapping my legs around his back. “Did you talk to Jerome about it?”

  “Yep.” Kingston nods. “He told me if I write him a check, he’ll sign whatever he needs to. The asshat felt the need to add that he never wanted a kid, so we were doing him a favor.”

  I scoff. “Yeah, ‘cause he’s the one we’re so concerned about.”

  “Right.” Kingston rolls his eyes. “Anyway... Sandra said she’ll draw up the paperwork first thing in the morning. Jerome signs, I wire the money to him, and she’s ours.”

  “Oh, my God.” I frown when something comes to mind. “How much did he ask for? How much money does he think she’s worth?”

  “I told him to name a figure. He said a million. I think he wasn’t expecting me to pay up, but when I agreed, the man literally jumped for joy.”

  “Kingston... I can’t let you do that. I’d never be able to pay you back.” I trace his eyebrow with my finger. “I love you so much for suggesting it, but...”

  He pinches my lips together. “I love her, too, Jazz. I want Belle in our lives, too. I’m doing this just as much for me as I am for you and her. I would’ve given him my entire fortune if he asked. It’s just money.”

  I laugh. “Only someone who’s never struggled to keep food on the table would say something like that.”

  Kingston gives me a wry look. “Focus on what’s important here, Jazz. Belle can be ours. Permanently. All you need to do is say yes.”

  I crawl onto his lap and pepper his jaw with kisses. “Yes. All the yeses.”

  He smiles. “Hopefully, you’re this agreeable when I ask you another life-altering question down the road.”

  I smile back. “All you need to do is ask.”

  “Good to know.” He winks.

  “I wish my mom could see us now. See how happy we all are and that we’re together.”

  I turn my face into Kingston’s palm as he places it on my cheek. “I’d like to think both our moms can see us. Hell, they’re probably hanging out in a fluffy cloud together, with their arms around each other like in that photo on the mantle, gushing about how their babies fell in love.”

  I smile because I can picture it perfectly. “You think so?”

  “I really do.” He nods slowly, searching my eyes. “I fucking love you so much, Jazz. I’m never going to stop telling you that, so if you have a problem with it, you’d better get over that shit right now.”

  I laugh because only this man could pull off throwing curse words into a romantic statement like that. “Don’t worry, Caveman, I’m not going anywhere.”

  “If you try, I’ll—”

  I roll my eyes playfully. “Yeah, yeah, I know. You’ll hunt my ass down.”

  His beautiful greenish-gold eyes twinkle with amusement. “You can bet on it, sweetheart.”

  ***

  NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: Thank you for going on Jazz & Kingston’s journey with me! While their story is complete, I wasn’t quite ready to say goodbye to these characters, so Bentley’s getting his own book! CLICK HERE for more info!

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  ALSO AVAILABLE BY LAURA LEE

  Standalone Novels

  ♥ Beautifully Broken

  ♥ Happy New You

  Dealing With Love Series (Interconnected standalones)

  ♥ Deal Breakers (#1 Devyn & Riley’s story)

  ♥ Deal Takers (#2 Rainey & Brody’s story)

  ♥ Deal Makers (#3 Charlotte and Drew’s story)

  Bedding the Billionaire Series (Interconnected standalones)

  ♥ Public Relations

  ♥ Sweet Temptations

  ♥ Billionaire Bosshole

  Windsor Academy Series (Each installment must be read in order)

  ♥ Wicked Liars

  ♥ Ruthless Kings

  ♥ Fallen Heirs

  Pixie Dust Chronicles (Each installment must be read in order)

  ♥ Pixie Dust

  ♥ Vampires, Warlocks, & Exes ~ Oh My!

  ♥ My Fairy Lady (Novella)

  ♥ Finding Faerie

  ♥ Elemental Magicks

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  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Laura Lee is the USA Today bestselling author of steamy and sometimes ridiculously funny romance. She won her first writing contest at the ripe old age of nine, earning a trip to the state capital to showcase her manuscript. Thankfully for her, those early works will never see the light of day again!

  Laura lives in the Pacific Northwest with her wonderful husband, two beautiful children, and three of the most poorly behaved cats in existence. She likes her fruit smoothies filled with rum, her cupboards stocked with Cadbury's chocolate, and her music tur
ned up loud. When she's not chasing the kids around, writing, or watching HGTV, she's reading anything she can get her hands on. She's a sucker for spicy romances, especially those that can make her laugh!

  For more information about the author, check out her website at: www.LauraLeeBooks.com

  You can also find her “working” on social media quite frequently.

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  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  To my husband, Tad: You are my rock. My soulmate. My ride or die. Thank you for being you.

  To my beautiful children: You two are my world, even when you’re driving me nuts.

  To my friend and fellow author, Julia Wolf: Thank you for your brainstorming genius. Once again, this book wouldn't be out in the wild without you.

  To my lovely betas Crystal, Julia, Alley & Heather: Thank you for being the first to read Fallen Heirs. Your feedback was invaluable.

  To my author pals Julia, Heather, Sylvie, Stephanie, Alley, Molly, Elizabeth, Marika, Susannah, Krista, Kelsey, Brenda, Sara, Elle, Eva, Cassy, Tracy, Kristy, Lindsey, Samantha, Kristi, E.M., Dani, Carmel, Isabella, Cassie, Danielle, Jami, Brooke, Lauren, and anyone else I may have missed. (Please don’t take it personally—my brain is mush more often than not these days): Thank you for always being there when I need encouragement, someone to vent to, a brainstorming partner, a marketing partner, or just a good laugh or friendly face. You’re all incredibly talented and awesome human beings. 2020 has been an absolute shitshow and you ladies have helped make it better.

  To Christine and the Wildfire crew: Thank you for bringing me on board. I’ve learned so much in a short time and I can’t wait to see what we can do together in the future!

  To all the seriously awesome bloggers & bookstagrammers in the book world: I appreciate you so much, as a reader and a writer. We could all use a little escapism in the world right now, and you help with that tremendously.