Chapter 5 - THE CRACKS IN THE FOUNDATION
I returned to my penthouse in Center City.
Noelle was there,
waiting with a glass of wine and a scowl.
"Where have you been?" she demanded.
"The hotel called. They were very offended."
I looked at her.
I saw the expensive clothes.
I saw the calculated grace.
And for the first time,
I saw the monster underneath.
"I saw Rachel Ames today," I said,
my voice as cold as a mountain stream.
Noelle froze.
The glass in her hand trembled for a split second.
Then,
the mask slipped back into place.
"Rachel? The girl from college? That was years ago, Evan."
"She has triplets, Noelle."
"Triplets with gray eyes."
"My eyes."
Noelle laughed,
a sharp,
brittle sound.
"Evan, don't be ridiculous. She probably found someone else."
"I found a letter," I said.
I pulled the forged note from my pocket.
"A letter I never wrote."
"Rachel told me you were there that day."
"At my mother's office."
Noelle’s face turned a sickly shade of white.
"I... I don't know what she's talking about."
"I was just there for lunch."
"You knew she was pregnant," I hissed.
I stepped closer to her.
"You watched my mother drive her away with a lie."
"And you spent four years pretending it never happened."
Noelle set the wine glass down with a bang.
"Your mother did it for you, Evan!"
"She was a waitress! She would have ruined your career!"
"Our families are joining! This merger is worth billions!"
"I don't care about the money!" I roared.
"I have three children!"
"Children you tried to erase!"
Noelle’s eyes narrowed.
The sweetness was gone.
"If you call off this wedding,
your father will disinherit you."
"Your mother will make sure Rachel is tied up in custody courts for a decade."
"You think you can just walk away?"
"We have a contract, Evan."
I looked at her with pure disgust.
"You're right. We have a contract."
"And I'm about to find the breach."
I walked into my study and locked the door.
I called my private investigator.
"Find out which law firm handles the Stanton family's private affairs," I said.
"And find me the notary who signed my mother's documents in April four years ago."
"I want the truth."
"And I want it before Saturday."
I sat in the dark,
listening to Noelle pacing in the living room.
She was calling my mother.
I knew it.
The war had begun.
But I wasn't fighting for a merger anymore.
May you like
I was fighting for Leo, Mia, and Chloe.
And I wasn't going to lose.
