Chapter 17 – Heated Arguments
“You ruined the deal yourself.”
Lin’s words echoed in my skull like a war drum. Even after the door shut and the silence settled they wouldn’t stop ringing.
I sat there for a moment, just staring at the empty chair he left behind. My chest felt like it was caving in. I clenched the documents in my hand so tightly the paper tore.
I had lost it. The investment. The deal. The future of Velcro Corp.
All gone.
And somehow, I knew exactly who to blame.
I stormed out of the office, ignoring the startled looks from the staff. I didn’t stop at my car- drove like a man possessed, barely remembering the turns as I made my way home.
The moment I walked into the house, my mother was sitting in the living room with a smug glass of wine in her hand, like she’d been waiting for this moment.
“Look who’s home,” she said without looking up. “The groom of the year.”
I dropped my briefcase with a loud thud.
“Don’t start, Mom,” I growled.
She glanced over at me, raising a brow. “Why do you look so crestfallen? Didn’t you just get married and now you’ve secured your company?”
“The deal fell through, Mom,” I gritted out.
My mom suddenly burst into a mocking laughter, “Cheers to the man of the year then. You managed to lose your faithful wife and your company.”
‘Don’t talk like that, Mom,” I snapped.
“Why not? You married the mistress and lost your company in the same week. That’s got to be some sort of record.”
I clenched my jaw. “It wasn’t her fault-“”
‘Wasn’t it?” she snapped, cutting me off. “You brought Cara into this house like she was some damn queen. You let her stomp all over Gwen, and now you want to play victim because Lin saw through your bullshit?”
My fists curled at my sides.
“Watch your mouth.”
“No, Jack,” she said, standing now. “You watch yours. You lost Gwen-the only person who ever loved you without wanting something in return. You traded a wife for a scandal.”
“Don’t talk about Gwen like you ever gave a damn!” I shouted. “You hated her!”
“I may have hated her,” my mother hissed, “but she didn’t deserve what you did. You broke her, Jack. And now you’re reaping it.”
Before I could answer, footsteps echoed from the hallway. Cara emerged, arms folded over her
bump, face pale and tight.
“You’re blaming me now?” she asked, voice low but dangerous. “Are you seriously standing here letting your mother say I’m the reason your company’s falling apart?”
I turned to her slowly, heart thundering.
“You are the reason.”
Cara blinked. “Excuse me?”
“You made me marry you,” I snapped, storming closer. “You pushed for it at your parents’ house You cornered me into proposing. I went there for business, not a fucking wedding!”
Tears welled up in her eyes, but I was too far gone to care.
“You staged everything-your parents, your brothers, even that ridiculous ‘almost-fall’ at the stairs. You manipulated me into marrying you when I was still reeling from Gwen leaving!” “I did it because I love you!” she cried, stepping toward me. “Because you said you loved me!” “I was trying to save my company!” I shouted. “And guess what? That company is dead now. Lir pulled out because of you. Because of our marriage. Because of the scandal. Because I married the woman who helped ruin Gwen!”
‘You were the one who killed her baby!” Cara screamed.
Silence dropped like a blade.
My mother’s glass shattered against the wall. “Get out,” she whispered, her voice shaking. “Get out of here, both of you.”
‘I didn’t kill-” I started, but Cara laughed bitterly.
‘Oh, please, Jack. Save it. You held the pillow. You gave the order. You watched her scream while they made her barren. You destroyed her.”
felt dizzy. My throat tightened.
‘I was trying to save David. I did it for you, fucking bitch!” I spat.
Cara stepped closer, eyes cold and wet.
‘Yeah, well, why are you suddenly feeling guilty, huh? Oh no, I know. You still want Gwen. You married me, but your heart-what’s left of it-is still with her.”
swallowed hard, unable to deny it.
She saw it in my silence.
Cara smiled cruelly. “She’s not coming back, you know. You pushed her out of a plane, Jack. She won’t forget that. She won’t forgive it. She’s gone.”
I turned away from her, from my mother, from the war they’d waged in my living room and in my soul. But I couldn’t escape it.
“She commented on your engagement post,” my mother said suddenly, voice cold. “Do you what she wrote?”
I didn’t answer.
know
“She said ‘Congratulations. I wish you both happiness.’ That’s what you lost, Jack. A woman who could say that after what you did.”
coument
2/3 18.5%
My knees buckled and I sank into the couch, head in my hands.
Everything was falling apart.
Cara turned to leave, then paused. “You made your bed, Jack. Lie in it. Alone.”
She stormed out of the house. My mother disappeared down the hall a moment later.
I was left in silence, with nothing but guilt and the ghost of a woman who once loved me.
And I realized then… Everyone was right.
didn’t just lose Gwen, I destroyed her.
