Page 73 of Bride on the Dotted Line

But it felt real.

My phone call with Alvin and Victor this morning was short and to the point.

Thank you for everything you’ve done, but due to the nature of your father’s past, we’ve concluded that Mr. Harwood is unable to risk the family name further. You will leave Nicholas’s residence as soon as possible, and any further correspondence will proceed through Victor’s office. Please contact your lawyer and start the divorce proceedings by the end of the week.

Alvin’s tone was flat and cold, as if he were reading off a script. Victor said nothing, though he was there, apparently, in the room. I could feel the ice in his gaze frosting the edges of my phone.

Last night feels like a dream. The whole last month and a half feels like a dream. That thirty-second phone call was all I needed to shake me back to reality.

“I feel so stupid,” I told Lena and Mason earlier, putting them on speakerphone as I packed my things at the penthouse. “I can’t believe I got so involved.”

“What does Nick have to say about this?” Mason had asked.

“I don’t think he knows yet. I heard him leave earlier, probably to go see his dad.”

Lena made a huffing noise. “Well, does he feel the same way as you? Because Victor Harwood might be the richest, most powerful man in the city, but he can’t just?—”

“He can.” I stuffed my laundry into my suitcase, folding the lid closed and zipping it up. “He’s about to pass his company to his son, and our marriage agreement was part of that. Technically, what Nick and I feel for each other puts the contract in jeopardy anyway. Victor can do whatever he wants.”

“He’s a prick,” Mason said indignantly. “A real piece of work.”

“Charters will still get paid, at least.”

“Oh, yeah?” Lena had deadpanned. “And what about you? You just spent a whole month working around the clock, going above and beyond for the Harwood family, and they’re just going to leave you out to dry? Because of the false rumors about your dad?”

“They offered to let me keep the first payment, so my dad’s legal debts are settled. I’m not back where I started.”

“But you’re still leaps and bounds from where they promised you’d be.”

“Lena, there’s no way to?—”

“I don’t get it,” Mason cut in. He sounded genuinely puzzled. I packed my shampoo and conditioner from my ensuite into a tote bag, nausea squeezing my stomach. “You’re falling for this guy. He likes you, too. But his shit family is trying to screw you and keep you apart. The Sienna I know wouldn’t let this happen.”

“There’s nothing I can do,” I told him.

“You can fight. You can refuse to roll over.”

“I’m not rolling over.”

“Yes, you are. You’re letting them push you out. The Harwoods have no business?—”

“I’m scared, Mason.” The words had flown out so unexpectedly that I clapped a hand over my mouth. Mason fell silent as a sob wracked through me, finally emerging from the place it had been brewing all morning.

“Sienna?”

“Last night …” I sniffed, holding my palm to my chest. “It felt like—like my whole life had been leading up to that moment with Nick, where we finally told each other how we felt. But it was also like standing on the edge of a cliff.”

“A cliff?” Lena said.

“Yes. And I don’t know long a fall I can survive. Maybe it’s best …” I scrubbed my palms over my damp cheeks, looking at my wedding ring sitting on the bedside table. “Maybe it’s best that this happened now.”

“What do you mean?”

“Maybe it’s best that I don’t jump.”

Silence on the other end. Tears spilled through my fingers, and finally Lena spoke up.

“Well, shit,” she said. “She reallyisin love.”

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