Page 158 of Down Knot Out
Harrison adjusts his glasses, frowning at thedocument. “These terms are outrageous. No court would?—”
“We’re not going to court,” Milo interrupts. “This is a private arrangement between family members.”
Gregory’s fingers drum once on the table in a rare sign of agitation. “And if I refuse?”
“Then we go public.” I refuse to back down. “With everything.”
“You have nothing,” Simon sneers, but uncertainty flickers across his face.
Dominic reaches into his pocket, places a small recording device on the table, and pushes play.
Gregory’s voice fills the room, the recording crystal clear:“Chloe, there’s no easy way to say this, so I’ll be direct. I’m not your uncle. I’m your father.”
Simon’s mouth falls open. Harrison stiffens, his head swiveling to stare at Gregory, who sits motionless, his face draining of color.
Dominic stops the recording. “We have the entire conversation from our last visit here. Every word.”
Silence follows, and I can almost hear the gears turning in Gregory’s head as he calculates the damage, the scandal, the cost to his reputation.
Harrison rallies, his chest puffing up. “Yourecorded a private conversation. That’s inadmissible?—”
“In court, perhaps,” Nathaniel says, calmly folding his hands on the table. “But the court of public opinion plays by different rules.”
He begins laying out notarized documents on the table, arranging them in a neat line. “Falsified birth records. Estate misdirection. Concealment of paternity.”
Gregory doesn’t read the documents. He doesn’t need to. We both know they’re real.
“Vivian hid your real identity?—”
“You’ve been paying off my mother since we left the Sinclairs,” I cut in, “and you hired Simon to stalk me in college. You wouldn’t have done either unless you already suspected who I was to you.”
Simon pushes away from the table, his chair rolling back. “This is ridiculous. You can’t?—”
“Be quiet, Simon.” Gregory doesn’t even look at him, but Simon’s mouth snaps shut.
Harrison leans toward Gregory, whispering in his ear.
Gregory’s expression turns cold and closed off. “What do you want?”
“It’s all outlined in those papers.” I straighten my spine. “I want a clean break and financial compensation for what you stole from me.”
“I would have given you everything.” Anger cracks his controlled veneer. “Status. Wealth?—”
“But not the mother I could have had if you hadn’t rejected your true mate.” My chest burns, anger building beneath my ribs. “Not the years I spent wanting to die after you threw me out of your pack. Not the nightmares of what Louie Santaros tried to do because you weren’t there to protect me. The only thing youcangive me isthis.”
Dominic’s hand finds my thigh, his pride flooding our bond.
Nathaniel places another document on the table. “This includes a non-disclosure agreement. Once signed, Chloe agrees never to speak publicly about her paternity or any Sinclair family matters.”
Harrison reaches for it, scanning the contents with a scowl. “And the recording?”
“Destroyed upon payment,” Milo confirms. “Along with all copies.”
Gregory studies me, searching for weakness. “You would erase your own history for money?”
“I’m not erasing anything. I’m choosing my future.” I drop my hand to my lap to clasp Dominic’s. “And if anything happens to me, or to anyone I care about after this deal is done, the NDA becomes void. Everything goes to all majornetworks in the country, and it will rip apart the Sinclair pack.”
I let that sink in before continuing. “You can’t scrub this clean, Gregory. Not even you have that much power.”
