Dameon
One hour earlier
“Sir,Mr.Stricklandishere to see you.”
“Thank you, Portia. Send him through.” I hang up the phone and recline in my chair.
Well, isn’t this just delightful.
What brings the ruthless prick to Sydney? If he’s here to gloat about stealing the last two mergers from us, he can fuck right off. The frosted glass door of my office swings open, and in strides the man who once attempted to seize control of my company. I’ve always hated the way he carries himself with an air of superiority.
“Well, this is quite the setup,” he remarks, surveying my office as he approaches the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. “This would have made a perfect office for my secretary. She loves a good view when she’s bent over,” he adds with a creepy smile. I roll my eyes. This asshole does absolutely no favors for the male population.
“I’m sure she would have loved it, but then, anything beats staring at your ugly mug while she counts the seconds.” I smirk. “It’s a shame you overplayed your hand with the takeover. Underestimating us was a mistake, one I’m sure still stings.” There’s no missing the clench of his jaw at that.
“What brings you here, Mark?” I snap. I’m done playing games.
He casually unbuttons his suit jacket and settles into the chair opposite my desk. “Feel free to make yourself comfortable,” I say sarcastically, gesturing toward the chair.
“I came to see how my stepdaughter is treating you,” he begins, a sneer plastered on his lips.
“Our relationship is none of your concern.”
“But it is, you see,” he continues, his tone dripping with arrogance. “Hailee has been diligently feeding me information on your mergers for months. How did you think I knew when to pounce at the last minute?”
My heart drops like a stone, and I go deathly still.
It can’t be true. Can it?
For months now, I’ve been trying to figure out how he was getting hold of our confidential information. What he’s saying is logical, but not possible. She wouldn’t betray me like that. Not Hailee. She hates her stepfather, and the idea of her spying on me for him feels far-fetched. I’m fighting the urge to wipe that look off his face with my fist.
“You’re lying.”
“Am I?” His eyebrow pitches, and we lock eyes, staring each other down for a tense moment. And I just know, by the look in his eye, he’s not lying. My world drops out from under my feet as the realization sinks in. The denial lingers on my tongue, ready to fall, but I swallow it back at the last second.
He nods, tries to look sympathetic. “Ah, your silence says it all. Deep down, you know I’m telling the truth.”
Fury unlike anything I’ve ever felt boils through my veins, scorching my heart and turning it to ash but I maintain my stoic expression, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing the pain her betrayal has caused me.
This can’t be happening again.
Mark chuckles and gets up to go, his point served. “Oh, and congratulations, by the way,” he says, holding the door to my office open. “I hear you’re going to be a father. Hailee’s very excited. I look forward to joining our empires together in the future… Welcome to the family.” His grin is triumphant as he strides out of my office.
Panic grips my chest, constricting my lungs. The world blurs and spins around me, and I grip the desk to steady myself, but it doesn’t stop the spiraling motion flashing before my eyes. I push my chair back and bend over, putting my head between my knees.
Each inhale feels like a battle against suffocation, my lungs starved of oxygen, my chest threatening to burst under the pressure. Slowly my breathing regulates, and the black spots dancing on the edge of my vision fade away. As I calm down, I chuckle bitterly at the irony that only Hailee could bring me to my knees like this.
With that thought, my anger returns full force and kicks my ass into gear. I slam my laptop shut, shoving it into my bag along with my keys, phone, and wallet. Bursting out of my office, I bark orders at Portia to have my driver ready. I descend in the elevator with my heart clenching tight in my chest. I can’t even think; my mind is a whirlwind. Betrayal tastes bitter on my tongue, making it difficult to swallow, while fury and pain intertwine like a volatile cocktail urging me forward. The entire car ride, the only thought that runs through my mind is:This cannot be happening again.
At home, the sight of Hailee and Beth laughing by the pool sends me into a wild rage. I storm upstairs to the bathroom, searching frantically for Hailee’s contraceptives. It was a stipulation of the contract that she take birth control provided by my doctor. I can’t even remember when she last had her period.Fuck!
I empty the contents of her cabinet, sending makeup, lotions, and aspirin crashing to the floor in a chaotic mess, but I couldn’t give a fuck. When I don’t find anything, I slam my hands down on the sink and glare at my reflection in the mirror. Pain is etched into my features, and the sight of it only adds to my fury.
I grab the closest bottle of perfume and hurl it against the shower door, the glass exploding into a million tiny pieces. As the liquid drips down the screen, my eyes land on the bin beside the shower. I reach for it in two steps, wrenching it open and upending it, scattering its contents across the floor. My heart pounds as I sift through the debris with the tip of my shoe, freezing when I spot the small plastic stick with two tell-tale lines. Clutching it tightly in my fist, I storm downstairs and burst through the balcony doors.
Chapter thirty-two
Hailee
