Page 119 of Stuck with my Mechanic Daddies

I swallowed hard.

He leaned back in his chair, casually adjusting the cuff of his tailored suit. “See, Aurora, you're making this harder than it needs to be. You can fight me. You can go to court. You can drag this out, burn through your savings, watch Page Turners crumble under legal fees. Or you can walk away.”

I glared at him. “Not a chance.”

He sighed dramatically. “That's what I thought. Which is why I took the liberty of preparing a little insurance policy.”

I stilled.

Hank opened a drawer, pulled out a slim envelope, and slid it across the desk toward me.

I hesitated. Then, slowly, I reached for it, my fingers trembling slightly as I lifted the flap and pulled out the contents.

One look, and the blood drained from my face.

My uncle.

A letter, written in his shaky handwriting, dated just weeks before his death.

And an attached document, one that, if real, proved he had considered selling Page Turners after all.

But that wasn’t the worst part.

The worst part was the signature at the bottom.

My uncle’s name—the ink slightly smudged, but unmistakable.

I looked up, my heart pounding. “You forged this.”

Hank’s smile was slow, like a predator that had just cornered its prey.

“Prove it.”

I gripped the forged document so tightly my nails nearly pierced the paper.

“You're a liar,” I spat. “My uncle would never have sold Page Turners to you.”

Hank just chuckled, slow and patronizing.

“You sure about that?” He gestured toward the letter. “Because that says otherwise. You see, your uncle wasn’t exactly the upstanding businessman you thought he was.”

My jaw clenched. “Don’t you dare talk about him.”

“Why not?” Hank leaned back, crossing one ankle over his knee like we were having a friendly conversation. “He was drowning in debt, Aurora. He ran that store into the ground, and you know it. If he hadn't died, he would’ve had to sell sooner or later.”

I shook my head, refusing to believe it. “He loved that store.”

Hank sighed, like he was dealing with a particularly slow student.

“Love doesn’t pay off loans. Love doesn’t keep the lights on.” His smirk sharpened. “Love doesn’t stop people like me from taking what's owed.”

Rage burned in my chest. “Owed? You think you're owed Page Turners?”

His eyes gleamed. “It was supposed to be mine years ago. My father had a deal, and your uncle broke it. He thought he could screw over the Lawsons and walk away unscathed. But actions have consequences.”

I slammed my hands onto his desk. “You blackmailed him, didn’t you? It was you behind all of that.”

Hank’s expression didn’t even flicker. “Let’s just say I gave him some options.”

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