Page 68 of Sweetest Revenge

“You were right, as always. Does that make you happy?”

“Being right doesn’t make me happy, Addi.”

“Doesn’t it?” I shot back at him, slamming his laptop shut. I met his gaze, unwilling to back down. “Isn’t that why you’re doing all this? Why you bought me in the first place? You want to ruin my life. Want to prove just how much I want you just so you can turn around and use it against me.”

As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I regretted them.

He put his coffee down and leaned forward, getting in my space. His hand was on my chin, forcing me to look at his darkened gaze.

“I don’t take pride in watching you come apart. In watching everything your father did tear off pieces of your soul. If I had it my way, you’d forever live in the delusion that he was a good man.” His thumb brushed over my lips. “Believe me when I say the last thing I want is for you to be hurt.”

My lower lip trembled.

“But you were the one who hurt me from the beginning.”

His eyes fell to my lips before coming back to my eyes.

“Don’t be a brat,” he whispered and sat back down. “Get the work done.”

I grumbled a string of curses under my breath. I hated how easily he controlled me. How he made my heart race and stomach flutter with even the slightest touch, even in times when I should be pissed at him.

Asshole.

Want to prove just how much I want you.

I shouldn’t have said that.

I opened the computer again, navigating to his email. When I opened it, I gasped.

“Why do you have over four hundred unread emails?”

“I’m an important man, Addi,” he said without looking at me.

Important, my ass.

“Can you at least give me some context?" I asked as I started looking over his emails, starring the important-looking ones to go back to and skipping the ones that looked like they could wait.

“I’m investing in a company,” he said. “But there are rumors that the CEO abuses his staff—all of them, but especially the female ones. He’s also been rumored to inflate revenue?—”

“So you’re going there to look,” I finished for him. It all sounded very Warren-like and honestly a bit boring.

When I was younger, I might have dreamed of being as important as someone like him. Having the power to make CEOs bend to my will. Creating change by just mentioning a problem.

But it all seemed so… shallow after losing everything.

“To protect my investment.”

“Or tear them down for fun,” I said. “Like you do all the others.”

“Semantics.”

I rolled my eyes. He really is a heartless bastard. Something I needed to try harder to remember.

My eyes scanned the emails, pausing when I caught one particularly urgent.

“Call Jules when we land,” I said, looking up at him. “She said one of the board members of GreenCore Renewables was caught driving under the influence and is now in jail. I’m guessing a bit of damage control is needed.”

He was silent. Thank god. I turned back to the computer and continued to sort through it. Maybe when I wasn’t under scrutiny, I could search back a few years. See if there was anything suspicious in his emails about my dad’s death.

---