Page 112 of All Bets Are Off

“I’m sure.”

“Well, it’s a bit convoluted, but Infinity Group—you remember I brought them up?—they’re a company in name only. They’re owned by several other companies, and when you track the line of companies, they all lead to your father. He’s the one who has been taking five-hundred-grand a month off the books. It was less when he started—maybe so he could see if he could get away with it—but more in recent months.”

“But … why?” That was the part I couldn’t wrap my head around.

“I’m not sure on that part,” Olivia hedged. “I have a few theories.” She cast her gaze toward the door, to where Wren’s desk was situated on the other side. “I think your father is going to have to explain the rest of it to you.”

My eyes landed on my father. “What did you do?”

“She’s lying,” Dad insisted. He wasn’t full of nearly as much bluster as he normally would be. In fact, he was downright pale. “She’s making it up. This is all because she knows that you’re going to divorce her and marry someone higher on the food chain. This is her trying to prove she should be kept in the loop.”

My shoulders jerked. He’d actually said it. Out loud. To my wife. When I turned to tell Olivia to ignore him, I found her features devoid of color. Never in my life had I seen her looking weak, but she did now.

“Don’t believe him,” I blurted. “That’s not what we were talking about.”

“Of course it is.” My father was a master at pressing an advantage when he sensed a fissure. He’d thrown Olivia off her game, and now he was going to remove her from our lives. That was his entire goal here. “Zach and I agree the Dawber girl at the Cosmopolitan makes a better match. As much as I appreciate the calming presence you’ve had on my son’s life, I believe your time in this family is done.”

“Don’t listen to him,” I hissed, moving to stand again. My legs felt like jelly. This was too much, all at once. Just way too much.

Olivia was careful to avoid making eye contact with me. She seemed … uneasy … as she stood. Carefully, she licked her lips and then focused her full attention on my father. “I know what I found. I know what you did. I’m going to leave you two to talk about it, though.”

I scrambled to get to the door at the same time as her. “Don’t believe him,” I begged. “That’s not what was happening.”

“Of course it is,” Dad argued. “There’s no need to be shy. I said I would be the one to tell her. You don’t have to turn into a puddle of piss because you feel guilty.”

“That is not true.” There was a legitimate chance that I might pass out I was so worked up. “Do not listen to him. He’s trying to distract you.”

“Of course he is.” Olivia made an attempt at a smile, but it was weak. “You need to deal with this, though. I’m telling the truth about the books.”

“I know you are.”

“We’ll talk about the other stuff later.” She still wasn’t making eye contact. “I think you need to deal with your father first.”

I didn’t want to, though. I did not want to deal with my father. All I wanted was Olivia. She was already slipping away from me.

“Please don’t leave.” I didn’t want to beg, but I wasn’t above it. “Please, just … don’t leave me.”

“I’m here for you, Zach,” she assured me. “This has to be dealt with first. We’ll worry about the other stuff later.” She was remote as she finally found the courage to meet my gaze. “We’ll talk later.”

“Livvie—”

“Later,” she insisted, blinking back tears. It was obvious she was rocked and hurt by what my father had said. Did she believe it, though? That’s what I couldn’t ascertain. “I’ll be around.”

With that, she walked through the door. She didn’t look back.

I just had one question. Was she walking out of my life too?

27

TWENTY-SEVEN

My heart pounded as I looked between the hallway Olivia had disappeared down and my father.

What Iwantedto do was chase her, tell her I loved her—because I did—and lock ourselves in the penthouse for a week. I needed to feel her in my arms more than anything.

What Ihadto do was deal with my father. I was no longer a child. I was a man. That meant I was done being bossed around by my father. I was done respecting him. It was time to deal with him.

Slowly, I shut the door and turned back to my father. He looked smug. Did he think he’d just won something? It appeared so, and that made me angrier than before.

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