I didn’t know how long I sat there in the near-dark, staring at nothing. Minutes? Hours? It didn’t matter. My father had put me on “administrative leave” for optics reasons, which meant my deputy was handling crisis communications. I had nothing to do, so I could sit here for as long as I—
Someone rang the doorbell.
I didn’t move from my seat.
They rang the doorbell again, and when that didn’t work, they pounded on the door.
Jesus Christ. Why couldn’t people leave mealone? If I wanted company, I’d seek it out.
“Sebastian, it’s me.” Maya’s voice was muffled, but I heard her loud and clear. “Open the door.” Another knock. “I know you’re in there, so if you don’t answer, Iwillkick it down.”
The mental image of her kicking in my door, action movie-style, brought a small smile to my lips, but it disappeared as quickly as it’d surfaced.
Out of everyone in my life, I dreaded facing her the most. I didn’t want to look her in the eyes and see who I’d become—someonehollow and broken, my shiny facade ripped away to reveal the terrible mess of guts underneath.
I wasn’t Sebastian Laurent, the golden boy; I was Sebastian Laurent, the failure. No, I was something even worse—I was an imposter.
For most of our lives, Maya had seen me as her rival, someone worthy of beating. What must she think of me now?
The shame burned its way through my lungs and up my throat.
“Sebastian!” Her voice turned pleading. “Please open the door.”
Fuck.I couldn’t say no to her, not when she used that word.Please.
I roused myself from the couch and reluctantly made my way to the front door. I opened it, wincing at the unnatural brightness. The sunlight was piercing after days of being cooped up in a dark house.
Maya stood on the front step. She was wearing a silk blouse and tailored pants, a clear sign she’d come straight from the office. Her gold birthday locket glinted under the sun.
The sight of it brought an unexpected rush of emotion to my chest. It was a small thing, but it was a sign she hadn’t given up on me—yet.
“Hi,” she said, her voice soft, her expression even softer.
“Hi.” I swallowed past the knot clogging my throat and let her in.
She followed me silently to the den, where her eyes immediately fell on the drinks lining the bar. She picked one up and offered me another glass. “I’ll drink with you.”
I tensed. “I can’t.”
Instead of pushing the issue, Maya set the second glass down and raised a questioning brow. When I nodded, she downed her drink in one swallow.
“How bad is it?” I asked after she was done. “Be honest. Don’t sugarcoat it.”
I’d seen the headlines, but I’d successfully stopped myself from reading the comment sections or going down internet rabbit holes. I felt shitty enough without seeing how many strangers thought I was shit, too.
However, the morbid part of meneededto know. How deep was the hole I’d fallen into, and would I ever be able to dig myself out?
“It’s brutal,” Maya admitted. “There’s a leaked video of some of the guests throwing up. We scrubbed as much as we could, but it keeps popping up online. People are having a field day with it. Hollis Miller also uploaded a fifty-minute rant about food safety and why everyone should boycott both our companies.” Her eye twitched. “The bastard didn’t even get sick. I wished he had. He would’ve deserved it. But anyway, our stocks are… not great. The board is apoplectic. That’s the bad news.”
I snorted, my tone dry. “There’s good news?”
“In a manner of speaking,” Maya said. “The good news is, all storms pass. This one will too.”
I wished I had her confidence.
“Maybe. But some storms leave so much destruction, nothing can be salvaged,” I said. “You’ll be okay.”She has to be okay.“But this is my family’s second scandal. Remember when I said we barely survived the first crisis, and we might not survive a second?” My mouth twisted. “Well, here we are, sinking. Whowould trust us now? Hell,Iwouldn’t trust us now.”
“Sebastian…”
