Page 40 of Ruin
“You never really told me how you came to get all his money, though. Does Daniel know the truth, at least?”
Reaching to rub my neck again, I’m surprised I haven’t rubbed it raw at this point.
“I had no choice but to tell him the truth, because I had no other way to explain how we went from poverty to untold riches overnight.” I look away for a moment, before meeting her gaze again. “I’d heard whispers when I aged out of foster care about him. He was well known, as you know. So I went to work for him. I didn’t tell him who I was, and was only at the very bottom of the hierarchy. Doing the shit jobs, like driving his henchmen around, doing back alley drug deals and that sort of stuff. Wasn’t that surprising, given my assumed background. Unfortunately, no one cares that much about the kids in the system, and too many of them fall in with unscrupulous characters when they age out.” I shake my head, still disgusted at the broken system we were forced to endure. “I’d heard that he wassick. Really sick. That was why I went to work for him. Eventually I gained access to his office. Found his will in a safe that I worked out the combination for. And I made a copy.” I smirk at the memory of what happened next. “I changed a few things. He was already on his deathbed by that point. So when he died, his family was particularly stunned to discover that his long lost sons were set to inherit his entire fortune. And that one of them had been working with them for months.”
She smiles, squeezing my hand. “Good. I’m glad you found a way to turn his ill gotten gains into a positive for you both.”
“Unfortunately, it wasn’t a simple case of being allowed to walk away from his family and leave them with nothing. I had to play the long game if I wanted to keep Daniel safe. And that’s how I came to meet a certain morally corrupt politician who saw how much money I had and wanted it for himself. Wanted everything I had,” I say, and the humour drains from her eyes as it dawns on her. “Including you.”
19
DON’T KNOW IF I CAN GIVE YOU WHAT YOU WANT
LILY
Drawing in a sharp breath,I hold Sebastian’s gaze, seeing the pain behind his eyes.
As Joseph’s true character came to light, I’d never understood how Sebastian had come to be friends with him. Joseph is ten years older than Sebastian and comes from a very wealthy family with a lot of influence. Not only within Sydney, but the entire country. With his eyes set on the nations top job, it wasn’t until after we’d married that I found out just how corrupt he was. But he’d already taken away my autonomy by then. And no one would ever believe the doe-eyed twenty-four-year old bride that everyone assumed was a gold digger after his money. His parents certainly didn’t know what an awful man they’d raised. He put on a very good act for the public, pretending to be all about the community and regularly attending church. Anything in the pursuit of his true goal of becoming Prime Minister one day.
But now it all makes sense. Joseph most likely used Sebastian,hoping to gain access to his money and influence. I’d heard more than one highly illegal business arrangement take place within the walls of our home. How no one has worked out how corrupt he is truly baffles me.
I tighten my grip on Sebastian’s hand. “I don’t want to rehash the argument from before, Sebastian. No matter what you believe, you had no control over what happened with me and Joseph. The minute my father discovered Joseph’s interest in me, it was game over. What better way for a property developer to make his millions than get in with the man in charge of signing off on projects? I always knew I’d end up a pawn for him to climb the ladder. It’s what I was born for.”
Sebastian’s jaw muscle tightens. “That night -” He pauses, and I hold my breath, wondering if we’re about to discuss what happened that last night.
The conversation we’ve avoided for weeks now.
He takes a deep breath and runs his hand through his hair. “That was the reason I came to you that night. That I begged you not to marry him.”
I nod. “I know. I didn’t understand at the time. And after what happened, I kind of didn’t think about that part of the conversation.”
He looks away for a moment, before his eyes meet mine again. “You mean the part where we kissed, and then never spoke to one another again?”
That kiss had left me so confused. Elated to finally feel his lips on mine. Horrified that I was kissing someone who wasn’t my fiancé. And it left me questioning everything I’d ever thought was real.
“Yes. That part of the conversation.”
“From the message you sent me afterwards, I figured it had no impact on you and you’d never think about itagain.”
Frowning, I think back to that night, and the days following. “What message?”
“The one where you informed me that there was no longer any place for me in your life.”
I stare at him, stunned. “I never sent you a message. Especially not one like that.”
“It wasn’t the sort of message one simply forgets sending,” he says, his expression hardening.
I grip his hand tighter. “Sebastian. I never sent you any message. I thought… after I never heard from you again, I assumed you hated me.”
“I could never hate you. And when I got that message… it broke me. So if you didn’t send it, then…”
We study each other quietly, as the pieces fall into place. “Joseph…” I whisper.
With a devastated expression on his face, he lets out a breath. “I guess that was the start of him cutting everyone out of your life that would have issues with your relationship.”
I swallow, emotions swirling in my stomach.
I can’t allow myself to think about it. I can’t imagine what my life would have been like if Sebastian hadn’t pulled away. That he hadn’t believed that I would end our friendship that way. That he believed the kiss that has plagued my thoughts a thousand times hadn’t consumed me.
