Chapter 2

Jason slid his hands into the pockets of his slacks and looked me up and down with a pitying expression.

"Oh, look who showed up. Ethan."

He shifted just enough to block my view of Victoria.

"Really sorry about earlier... but, you know, I had to think about Victoria. Big day like today—you really want some old beggar wandering in? Bad luck, right?"

He hit the words "old beggar" hard, with open contempt.

Jason was one of Victoria's company's top influencers—a wannabe star who fawned over her every chance he got. He'd been angling to climb the ladder since day one. Victoria truly valued him, and gave him opportunities left and right.

Now he was getting bold with me, riding high on her favor.

"Your father really doesn't know how to read a room, does he? Victoria's a big deal now. He shows up dressed like that? He's basically begging to embarrass her. I was just helping her clean up the trash."

His eyes flicked over my own plain clothes.

"Look, Ethan, I'm just saying—you should've kept the old man on a leash. When you're living off your wife, you've gotta know your place. Know which rooms you're invited into. Right?"

So that's what he thought of me. A useless freeloader, too pathetic to even keep his own father in check.

What did he know?

He thought he'd just done Victoria a huge favor. Thought he was one rung closer to whatever ladder he was climbing.

He reached out and brushed some imaginary dust off my shoulder, the gesture deliberately humiliating.

"Victoria's time is valuable. If you've got nothing else, you should probably head out."

I took a slow breath and forced the anger back down. Victoria was walking over.

"The person is lying by the trash can outside. He's not dead, but he needs an ambulance. Now."

"Whoever did it is paying. Jason—every cent of his medical bills. And damages. All of it."

Victoria's face twisted in disgust.

"Ethan, are you done? What is this nonsense?"

"It's not nonsense!"

"Jason attacked someone. He sent me a photo and a voice message bragging about it. The man lying out there is your father, Victoria. Your birth father. He needs help!"

Jason let out an exaggerated laugh.

"Some people, man. They've got nothing, so they start hunting for ways to scam money. I just politely walked the old guy out—he slipped and fell on his own. Now suddenly it's my fault? Ethan, I get that you're living off your wife, but coming up with shakedown schemes is a new low."

Victoria crossed her arms, her tone turning vicious.

"Ethan, I have had enough of you. You can't get your act together, fine, you drag me down—fine. But now your whole family's pulling the same crap? Showing up in rags to crash my IPO, then trying to pin it on my employees to squeeze money out of us?"

"Jason works for me, and I will not let you defame him! And now you want money? You're out of your mind!"

I looked at her—polished face, perfect makeup, dripping in jewelry, completely indifferent to the fact that her own father was lying out there bleeding out. Whatever was left of what I'd felt for her finally died.

I let out a cold laugh.

"Victoria, do you really think everyone's like you? That nobody can see anything in this world but money?"

"You—!"

I'd hit a nerve. The blood drained from her face.

Jason saw his opening and jumped in, jabbing a finger in my face.

"Ethan! Who the hell do you think you are, talking to Victoria like that? You think you're hot shit? Well, today I'll teach you a lesson for her, you ungrateful piece of—"

He swung at my face, putting on a show of manhood for Victoria.

I tilted my head slightly. His fist whiffed past me, his momentum carried him forward, and he hit the marble floor face-first.

A wet, heavy crack. The kind of sound that made you flinch.

Jason sprawled on the ground, too stunned to move.

When he finally raised his head, blood was streaming from his nose and the corner of his mouth. He was a mess.

"Jason!"

Victoria's face crumpled. She rushed over and dropped to her knees beside him, pulling a silk scarf from her purse and fumbling to press it against his nose. Then she whipped her head around to glare at me.

"Ethan! You animal! You actually hit him?!"

"Everyone here saw it. He swung first."

I glanced down at Jason, still groaning into the floor.

"He got what he deserved. He damn near killed an old man for no reason."

"Because of your dad's mess, you'd put your hands on Jason? Ethan, I had you all wrong. Broke is one thing, but this savage on top of it? You're just like that dying old fart of yours!"

"He's barely got any time left anyway. Today, next week—what's the difference? Jason was defending himself. He gave the guy a little shove. How was he supposed to know the old man would go down like that? Why are you making this Jason's problem?"

A cold laugh rose in my chest. Her father's front teeth had been knocked out. His whole face was a bloody mess. A little shove did that?

"Victoria, I told you—that's not my father. Look at the photo again. The clothes are old, yeah, but the cut and the fabric? That's Savile Row, about ten years ago—"

"Stop making things up! My dad's clothes are all the latest designs—I order them myself! Plus, he's on vacation. I talked to him this morning!"

Victoria slammed a folder hard against my chest.

"Sign it!"

The folder hit the floor and fell open. I glanced down. It was a waiver.

"Sign this and you promise to leave Jason alone."

"Otherwise, we're getting a divorce!"

"Ethan, your dad's a dead man. Without me, how do you plan to live? You better wise up before I completely lose interest in you."

Jason chimed in, putting on his best peacemaker voice.

"Victoria, let it go... Ethan's just shocked. I can handle a little disrespect—what matters is that you and the company are okay. He doesn't even have to sign anything! Just as long as Ethan stops attacking me..."

His voice was soft, pitiful, wounded. But when he glanced at me, his eyes were pure provocation.

"Fine. Let's get divorced."

Victoria froze.