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Chapter Two: The Patriarch of the Estate

Penulis: Ruthie B
last update Tanggal publikasi: 2026-05-22 22:59:10

Sloane's POV

"Sloane, if you walk out that door, don't expect to ever step foot back into my life!"

A cold smile ran from one ear to the other, curling my scarlet lips. "Who says I'm planning to return anyway? I'm kicking both you and your entitlement out of my world."

Finn was completely dumbfounded. I took full advantage of his shock, yanked my arm out of his lingering grip, and slammed the door shut behind me.

Not another word was uttered between us as I stepped out into the freezing night.

Without wasting any time, I fished out my phone and booked a one-way ride straight toward the Hartley family's private estate. Finn thought I was heading there to hide in a corner and weep over his crumbs.

He didn't know I was only going to retrieve the last remnants of my dignity—and the ten years' worth of personal belongings I had left there.

The drive through the outskirts of the city chewed up most of my evening, the dark sky slowly opening up into a torrential downpour. By the time the gates of the massive estate creaked open, lightning was tearing across the sky.

I was halfway up the stone steps of the grand entryway when a text struck my phone.

It was from my soon-to-be-ex-boyfriend.

(Don't think staying at the estate means you get a free pass to ignore my calls. My dad's arriving there tomorrow for a corporate audit. Make sure the guest wing is immaculate before he lands.)

I clicked my tongue, a bitter laugh bubbling in my throat.

Typical Finn.

He didn't think I was serious about ending things. Even after throwing me away for his past flame, he was already trying to boss me around, treating me like his unpaid, glorified personal assistant.

He thought his father was arriving tomorrow.

But as I pushed the heavy oak front door open and stepped into the grand foyer, the scent of expensive cedarwood, vintage bourbon, and pure, unadulterated authority hit my senses.

My heart kicked against my ribs with every step.

Standing near the floor-to-ceiling glass windows of the dimly lit study, looking out at the roaring storm, was a silhouette that made the entire room feel small.

Broad, powerful shoulders. A tailored charcoal suit that screamed old money and absolute dominance. Dark hair styled to absolute perfection.

It wasn't Finn.

It was Knox Hartley. The supreme patriarch of the Hartley empire, and the only man Finn genuinely feared.

Hearing my footsteps, Knox slowly turned around. His observant green eyes locked onto mine, sharp, unapologetic, and burning with a dangerous intensity through the shadows.

"I was under the impression my son was bringing his mistress to dinner tonight," Knox's deep, velvety voice oozed through the quiet room, sending a sudden shiver straight down my spine. "Yet, I find you standing in my foyer, soaked to the bone, Miss Mercer. Or should I call you my son's shadow?"

I squeezed the strap of my purse, forcing my chin upward as I met his crushing gaze.

For ten years, I had shrunk myself to fit into Finn's shadow whenever his father was around, trying to be the quiet, obedient girlfriend.

But not anymore.

"You can call me Sloane, Mr. Hartley," I said, taking confident, measured strides into the study, completely ignoring how the rain was dripping from my coat onto the expensive hardwood floor. "And as for your son... he's no longer a concern of mine. I came to collect my things."

Knox's dark eyebrows arched slightly, a look of profound amusement crossing his ruggedly handsome features. He set his crystal glass of bourbon down on the desk and stepped closer, erasing the distance between us until his massive frame completely consumed my view.

"Collect your things?" Knox murmured, his voice dropping to a low, gravelly vibration that felt entirely too intimate. "Finn has been trying to contact me all evening, whining about your sudden 'attitude problem.' He seems to think you'll be crawling back to him before the weekend ends."

"Finn is a fool," I said point blank.

Knox froze for a fraction of a second. It was rare for anyone to speak so bluntly in his presence, let alone the woman who had spent a decade playing the docile mate to his heir.

Slowly, the corners of his lips broadened into a dark, incredibly captivating smile.

"Yes, he is," Knox agreed softly, his green eyes dropping down to my lips before rising back to meet my gaze with an intense hunger. "He spent ten years neglecting a diamond, completely blind to the fact that you were the true backbone of his success. Tell me, Sloane... now that you're kicking him out of your life, what are you going to do about the empire you helped him build?"

I took a step forward, closing the remaining inches between us until I could feel the intoxicating heat radiating from his chest.

"I'm going to take what's mine, Mr. Hartley. And let your son watch me rise from the ashes."

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