h concern. "Sweetheart, have you really been playin

to Camila's open arms. She hoisted him up, enveloping him in a warm embrace.

t the office, and I'll make su

ka

red and slow, her face ashen like a s

d at least th

A shadow of panic flickered across her face at t

hter and retreated towards

She reached out, yanked Camila's hair, an

over like this? I funded your college, landed you a job at Infini

her. She had believed that Dean and Camila's affair was recent

and discarded by the two people she cherished most

s barrage of slaps to Camila, her rage uncontainable even

back and tossing her onto the cold floor with a resonant thu

his face a mask of stoic disinterest. "Elin, what has gotten into you? Have you

had loved for over a decade, the hurt palpable in her voice. "After your parents' death, my father welcomed you into our home, treate

d into a scowl, a dark s

matter, confident that no one else was aw

of anger and sorrow. "Why, Dean? Why orchestrate my downfall, pushing me

malice, "I wanted to annihilate your famil

t together. My father held the majority stake, yet yours always resented his secondary role. The day the company went pub

isbelief radiating with each word. "My dad treated you like his own son, s

. It wasn't out of the goodness of his hea

-seated hatred. "It wasn't about caring for me-he just wa

er meeting a disfigured man, a survivor of that catastrop

g. Asher's kindness had

cable irritation surged through him. In a sudden, harsh gesture, he seized he

his voice cold and resolute. "The next tim

th a resounding thu

an she had adored for years, whom she believed to be

hattered the Walsh family b

eets. As she numbly stepped off the curb, a car suddenly charged towar

she closed her eyes, a stra

if meeting her end here might be a mer