Page 106 of Sweet Wicked Vows

He sighed, his chest rattling. “Flynn still has a lot of growing up to do. I hope that once he graduates and steps into charge, it will help him step up.”

“This one.” I pointed to the third. “What exactly is in this file?”

“A mistake.” His brows scrunched together. “If you love my daughter like you claim, then you will ensure those files vanish before she and Flynn have to pay the consequences. They don’t deserve that.”

Holding the notebook tightly in my grasp, blood drummed in between my ears as the realization hit me.

Lexington Reynolds just handed me the key to taking down his entire company.

Everything Frederic and I ever worked toward was in my clutches.

So, why did I feel physically sick?

Chapter ThirtyThree

They call it the last good day.

Twenty-four hours after my father regained consciousness, he said he needed to rest his eyes and slipped back into a coma.

Except this time was different. His health declined rapidly over the weeks. His entire system was shutting down in front of us, and there wasn’t anything we or the doctors could do to stop it.

It was exactly eight weeks later when he finally succumbed to his illness and passed away.

The entire world and its surroundings no longer looked the same, as if they mourned his loss, too.

Over the last year, I watched my dad die in slow motion. Though my heart ached for the loss of him, a part of me was relieved that he was no longer in any physical pain.

I took time away from work, leaving an emotionally distraught Kerry in charge, who, despite crying more tears than me and Flynn put together, was happy to step in while I sorted out funeral arrangements.

Flynn could no longer ignore me, a small blessing in the midst of sadness. He said he needed someone to lean on, someone who was able to keep him together and not allow him to go running to the closest bar to bury his sadness.

I was proud of him when he admitted that to me.

Though Jaxon didn’t attempt to hide his displeasure, I let Flynnstay in our home the days after Dad’s death. The thought of him going back home, sleeping in that empty house all by himself, I wouldn’t wish that on anyone never mind my own flesh and blood.

Jaxon refused to forgive Flynn after handing over our address to Laurence. Something I knew was going to have to be dealt with sooner or later, but I didn’t have the fight left in me to face it just yet.

Plus, I didn’t want to plan the funeral all by myself. Jaxon offered to help, refusing to leave me for more than a day. He was my piece of dry land during the waves of grief threatening to drown me. But I felt it was only right that Flynn and I planned the funeral.

By the time the funeral rolled around, I was completely numb.

People from all over the world came to pay their respects.

I shook the hands of countless faceless people who offered their condolences.

I read a poem during the service, though my own voice was disconnected from my body.

I stood with Jaxon on one side, Flynn on the other, and watched them lower my father’s coffin into the ground while rain fell like teardrops from the sky.

Grief was a funny thing. It had the ability to draw out the most painful moments and make other days pass in the blink of an eye.

Before I knew it, June was upon us.

I was back to keepingReynolds Regality Jewelsrunning smoothly and only two months away from finally stepping down as CEO.

“Can we talk?” Flynn ran a finger along the spines of the books in my home office.

I zipped up my bag. “Can you make it quick? I’ve got a meeting in an hour with the owner of that building Jaxon found for me inSoho. If it’s as amazing as Jaxon says, it’ll be perfect.”

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