Back in Time to Fall for Him novel Chapter 54

Johnny's face fell at Madison's words, but he couldn't fire back. He had indeed said it, and he'd said it in front of everyone.

Caleb quickly totaled what Johnny and his group had spent the night before. He handed over the bill, all businesslike. "Mr. York, your total is 4.85 million dollars. Will you be paying by phone or card?"

"How is it that much? Did you pad the bill?" Johnny blurted, stunned.

He snatched the bill and started combing through it as panic crept in.

Disdain flickered in Caleb's eyes, but his tone stayed even as he explained, "Mr. York, it was this expensive because during your dinner last night, you ordered three bottles of ultra-rare vintage whisky. Each one costs a million dollars."

Johnny pressed his lips together and stayed quiet. He had already seen that there wasn't a single bogus charge on the bill. Most of it really was the booze.

He had been the one who ordered them last night just to show off. And part of the reason was that he had planned to make Madison pay, so he hadn't held back at all.

Since Johnny still wasn't responding, Caleb asked again how he'd like to pay.

Johnny clenched the bill in a white-knuckled grip, his cheeks burning, whether from shame or from holding it in.

In that moment, he regretted yesterday's big talk more than anything. The flashier he'd been yesterday, the more pathetic he looked today. He didn't even dare look around.

Everyone else finally saw the whole picture. They had always thought Kaitlyn and Johnny were the rich ones, when the truth was they'd been spending Madison's money all along.

"Oh my God, they'd been playing us for so long."

"What's worse, they were sponging off Madison without shame."

"You have to hand it to Madison. We mocked her that much, and she never even got mad."

He knew this wasn't the time to ask about it, so he said quietly, "I know. Let's handle this first."

Madison nodded and turned back to Johnny. She didn't let go of his hand, keeping it in hers, steady and reassuring.

She said, "Johnny, Kaitlyn, if you really can't cover the tab or pay me back, I'm not being unreasonable. I'll let you sign an IOU."

Today's spectacle wasn't only about exposing their hypocrisy. Getting them to admit the debt and sign IOUs was also part of Madison's plan.

They had come after her for money, and in her last life, they had destroyed her and even gotten Sam killed.

This time, she meant to saddle Johnny and Kaitlyn with a crushing debt. She also wanted to see whether, under real financial pressure, they could still pull together the way they had in her last life.