Chapter 3

Grant grabbed my shoulder and shoved me forward, trying to force my head down. "You're the one nobody wants, and you've got the nerve to call someone else a homewrecker? Apologize to Archer and his girlfriend right now.

"Donovan Group still has deals with this family. Don't you dare ruin that."

Diana rallied the guests behind her and started in on me without bothering to lower her voice. "This is just who he is. He stole Archer's toys when they were kids, and now he's trying to steal his girlfriend.

"He's acting like he's close with her, and she won't even give him the time of day. Take it from me, those two are in love. You're not going to wedge yourself in."

I wrenched free of Grant's grip and locked eyes with Claire. "Are you sure you don't know me? And you're sure Archer is your boyfriend?"

Claire's patience snapped. "I told you to apologize to Archer. Why are you changing the subject?

"If Archer wasn't my boyfriend, would I just stand here and let someone humiliate him like this?

"Apologize now. Or I promise you, I won't let this go."

A bitter smile crossed my face. So she knew. She'd known all along that I was the one being humiliated, and she'd stood by and watched the whole time.

I pulled up the photo from high school and held it up for everyone to see. "Say it again. Tell me you don't know me."

The room went quiet. People leaned in to look, eyes narrowing with suspicion. Archer stepped forward and held up his hand, showing off a ring that matched Claire's perfectly.

"Blake, if you keep trying to mislead everyone, my girlfriend is really going to lose her temper. I've already proposed to her. These are matching rings. My suit was custom-made by her clothing label.

"The watch, the cufflinks, and everything I'm wearing, she picked it all out for me. If you're really her fiance, surely you can show more than one old photo."

His ring matched Claire's. It was a couples' set, each one engraved with the other's name. Everything he wore came from brands under Claire's company, and she'd even had each piece monogrammed with his initials.

I gripped my phone, suddenly feeling foolish. Six years together, and she had never given me a single gift.

Every anniversary, it was the same thing. She'd give me a gift card and a text that said, "I'm busy with work. Just buy yourself something."

She never cared about any of that, and the only photo we had was from high school, one I'd practically begged her to take. There were no other pictures, no public posts, and not a single shred of evidence that we'd ever been together.

But for Archer, she'd poured everything she had into it, the custom labels and the personal engravings, and looking at all of it made my eyes burn.

Claire hooked her arm through Archer's and turned to face me. "He and I have met before—I'll admit that. We were in the same school back in high school, and he wouldn't leave me alone.

"As for that photo? He forced me to take it. Beyond that, there is nothing between us."

Diana snatched my phone and deleted the photo before I could stop her. "Don't tell me the girlfriend you've been going on about is your own brother's woman.

"So, this whole thing was a lie. You made up a fake girlfriend to trick Grandpa into handing you the estate."

I clenched my fists, my voice rising over the noise. "That's not true. I'm not the one who's lying."

But the crowd drowned me out. Someone shouted, "Claire's bracelet for Mr. Stirling Senior got smashed, and that thing was worth a fortune!"

"Ms. Donovan, don't let him get away with this. Who knows what he'll do to Archer next?"

"Make him step down as CEO. That's the least he can do to make it right."