Free The Devoted Winter: BWWM Billionaire Romance Novel (Her Winter Love Series Book 1) by Jamila Jasper

trouble getting his money back, the last thing he needed was to break Nadiyya’s trust even more by having his soon-to-be ex wife around causing trouble. Martine was a tornado and she was sure to destroy everything in her path.
     
    How could something so beautiful be so deadly?
     
    *********
     
    Chapter 8
     
    Nadiyya was certain that Slade had brought Martine back into Lucian’s life. Exactly the kind of nefarious plot she was starting to expect from him. Nadiyya wondered how she had managed to let someone so clearly psychotic so close to her. Weren’t there supposed to be signs for that kind of thing? Slade had seemed perfectly kind of gentle, but he obviously possessed a deeply rooted darkness that had grown in power since they’d started working closely with each other.
     
    Nadiyya knew she couldn’t let Slade get away with the torture he seemed to keep throwing into her life. She had to let him know that she was onto him. It didn’t matter if he knew her secret anymore. She couldn’t let Slade get control over her life. Nadiyya had always considered herself a Christian, but it had been a while since she’d turned to God for help. In her time of need, she knew she needed Christ more than ever.
     
    In the comfort of her bedroom, Nadiyya got down on her knees and gave her problems up to God. She thanked God for her blessings, the charming investor who had come to save her business from failure and her recent successes in life. She asked God to guide her and show her what to do next. Nadiyya was sure her recent difficulties were merely tests to see if she could maintain her faith in God. She wouldn’t let her faith falter. Nadiyya gave her problems to God and as his peace washed over her, she was given the answers she wanted.
     
    Nadiyya called Slade.
     
    He picked up after one ring. He was thrilled that she was reaching out to him. Slade had constructed a fantasy of what he expected to happen once Nadiyya found out about Lucian’s wife. He imagined that Nadiyya would call him with tears in her eyes. She would ask for his forgiveness for turning him down in favor of a man who was obviously a liar. She would beg Slade to come over and comfort her. In that moment, Slade would be free to make love to her. Slade’s delusions had replaced reality.
     
    What he perceived as his love for Nadiyya was merely the desire to possess her. It had grown and grown until Slade was no longer in control of himself. His desire had taken over his faculties completely. Logic was replaced by entitlement. Humanity was replaced by his need to take and take. But Slade had another thing coming…
     
    “Slade. It’s me. I don’t want to hear any of your bullshit. I’m calling you so I can give this to you straight. I don’t want there to be gray area between us. I want to make myself clear. I don’t know how you did it, but I knew you brought Martine here. I know you were trying to cause trouble but it didn’t work. Slade… You were my best friend but I want you out of my life completely. Delete my number, delete me from social networks and never try to get in touch with me again. You are nothing to me. This is for the best. I just can’t take the lies. I wish I could be sorry…”
     
    Nadiyya didn’t wait for a response. She hung up and deleted Slade’s number from her phone. He was really gone this time. She didn’t leave any ways for him to sneak back into her life. She rarely believed in cutting people off like this without giving them a second chance, but she felt like she was left with no other choice. God wouldn’t have directed her to do this without a reason. Nadiyya felt like crying, but she held back. She had no one else in Vermont who she was close to. Lucian was great, but there was still a definitive timeline on his presence. She would go back to being the lonely black girl in this white rural wasteland before she knew it.
     
    But before that, there was no real need to suffer. Nadiyya texted Lucian,