The door slams open, followed by Sebastian yelling, “What the fuck?"
I climb off the table with Ivy, moving her behind me, making sure my body blocks hers. "Jesus Christ, Bastian," I bite out. "Ever heard of knocking?"
He gives us his back. “Get dressed.”
I hand Ivy her clothes and get mine. “How about you leave?”
“No. This can’t wait. Please, let me know when you’re dressed, Ivy.”
Sebastian shakes his head and mutters, “Of course you’re sleeping with our lawyer. While everything is falling apart around us, thanks to you.”
“You should leave,” I tell Ivy.
“No,” she whispers. “I want to sink into the floor in a puddle of embarrassment, but we crossed this line together. I’m not letting you deal with our consequences alone.”
Her loyalty hits me like a shot of bourbon—warming and burning at once. I reach for her hand, squeeze once. “We're dressed, Bastian. And you're overreacting.”
“Am I? You're sleeping with our lawyer." He slaps a newspaper he’s holding against the pool table. "Of course you are. Because you can't think past what you want for five fucking minutes. You know what happens when this comes out? They'll use it to discredit everything she's told us. They'll make it look like she's been protecting you instead of giving us sound legal advice. But you didn't think about that, did you? You didn't think about her career, or the family, or me—you just took what you wanted. As usual.”
He tosses the paper he’s holding at my chest. I look down and the headline reads, “Blackstone Heir Visits Cooperating EPA Witness At His Home.” Below is a photo. Me, at Williams's front door. Voss is blurred in the background, but it’s clear enough to identify me. The damn photo is even timestamped and geotagged.
Who the hell was watching Williams's house? The EPA? Media? Someone with an agenda? He'd just been released on bail. They couldn't have already had surveillance set up—unless someone tipped them off. Could Williams be that stupid?
“Fuck,” I mutter.
“That’s all you have to say? Someone photographed you making contact with a federal cooperating witness," Sebastian points at the damaging evidence. "And now it's everywhere. The news, social media, the trades. They're asking what deals you made. Whether my green initiative is legitimate or a cover-up."
“It’s not. We can prove it.” My throat tightens. I can’t grasp my footing. In a matter of seconds, my world is exploding. Fuck, more like my decisions are annihilating those I care about.
"That doesn't matter! By the time we can prove anything, it will be too late.” He snatches his phone from me. "What matters is perception. What matters is that you went behind my back to visit the man who took bribes that could destroy us. After we agreed not to.” He moves into my personal space. “What mattersis that while I'm trying to hold this company together, you’re making deals without telling me and screwing our lawyer!"
“Sebsatian,” I warn. It’s one thing to come at me; it’s another to attack Ivy.
He turns back to me, opening his mouth, but I cut him off. “I was protecting your ass. Trying to fix a problem you weren’t willing to handle before it got worse."
"The only person's ass you've ever protected is yours." His eyes are ice. "You went to Williams. You made deals. You did it all alone, just like you always do."
“Because I had to.”
"No, because that's what you do. You think you know best. You make decisions that affect all of us without a single thought about the consequences." He's breathing hard, his hands clenched at his sides. "I thought we were handling this as a family. But you can't help yourself, can you? You're just like Dad."
The words land like a blade between my ribs.
“Don’t,” I suck in a breath and let it out through my nose. "Don't compare me to him."
“Why not? You're doing exactly what he did.” Sebastian's laugh is bitter. “Whatever you want, whenever you want, and expecting everyone else to clean up your mess."
“I’m cleaning upourfather’s mess.”
“By making deals behind my back? By fucking our lawyer?” he shoots back.
Ivy flinches beside me. Rage floods through me—protective, possessive. “Don’t disrespect her.”
He closes his eyes briefly, exhales. "I'm sorry, Ivy. That was out of line." His gaze shifts to me, cold and cutting. "But don't trust him. He'll wreck you just like he wrecks everything else, and he won't lose a minute of sleep over it."
I want to tell Sebastian to shut his mouth, but the words stick in my throat because he's right. I hurt everyone I love. And if I keep this up, I could easily fall in love with Ivy.
Since I can’t argue the truth of his words, I address the Williams situation. “I’ll get ahead of this. I can—.”
