♥♥♥
Katie waited for Chase to reach the lake house with stomach-churning anxiety burning in her gut. Reginald Jacob had called to let her know he’d told the family about the stock instead of waiting for her to do it, and Chase was on his way home. She tried to plan what she would say to him, but everything sounded ridiculous even in her head.
She heard the arrival of Chase’s car, and her heart started pounding so hard that it physically hurt. His car door slammed. She stared at the front door and counted the seconds. Now what? The entire Grayson family probably hated her. She only hoped that didn’t include Chase.
He stepped into the foyer and froze at the sight of her. A grimace twisted his lips. He took a moment to set his briefcase down near the door while she considered taking what was sure to be a bad argument to another room. Before she could move, he blasted her with what he obviously saw as betrayal.
“Reggie says he sold you his stock yesterday! Why the hell didn’t you tell me?”
“I had no idea he was going public so soon. I was planning to tell you this Friday when you got home.”
“How did you do it?” Chase’s eyes narrowed. “How did you talk him into giving you the stock he planned to sell to me?”
She felt the blood drain from her face. “I didn’t. It was his idea.”
“You must have done something. I don’t recall him ever speaking to you or about you. He doesn’t know you, and yet he gives you all of his stock. Explain that to me.”
She’d expected him to be upset by Mr. Jacob’s decision, but she was surprised by the intense hostility in his voice. “What exactly are you accusing me of?”
Chase yanked on his tie, loosening it with violent jerky movements. “A few months ago, you were a secretary with iffy credit, and now you’re a Grayson with almost as much stock as what I have. You climbed that ladder pretty fast. Poppy was even impressed.”
“Don’t you dare lump me in with Poppy. I am nothing like her, and you know it.”
“Do I?”
Escalating, the volume on their voices went up with each accusation.
Hands on hips, she stared him down. “Hey, you were the one begging me to marry you.”
“I didn’t beg. I made you a simple offer, and you jumped at it.”
“I turned you down flat.”
“For five minutes, just long enough to make me think you weren’t after my money.”
Incredulous, she shook her head at him. “Wow, your parents did a number on you. They twisted your mind like theirs and made you think money and power are more important than anything else. I feel sorry for you, Chase. I really do. If you don’t wake up, you’re going to spend your life alone.”
“Being alone is preferable to being with a gold-digger.”
“I am not...” She held her hands up and took a deep breath to calm her racing pulse and rising blood pressure. “You know what? I’m not going to defend myself to you. Think whatever you want.”
“You do realize you’ll lose all that stock the second we divorce, right? Or are you planning to use it as leverage somehow?” A bark of humorless laughter escaped his mouth. “Wait a second. Is that it? Are you planning to make a new deal? I stay married to you and you vote thirty percent my way at each meeting?”
She gaped at him in total disbelief. She had thought they had trust between them and were building something that would last. Maybe he didn’t love her yet, but she was hoping he was headed in that direction. Before today, she had thought he at least respected her.
“I think you should leave,” she mumbled.
“Leave?” He gestured to the walls around them. “You can’t throw me out of my own house.”
Her hands went to her stomach. “The only thing I wanted out of this marriage deal is right here.”
“Good. Because that’s all you’re taking with you, sweetheart.”
She started to unload her anger on him, but she remembered what Reginald told her about Chase and his father. Saying hurtful things wasn’t going to help anyone. She took another deep breath and silently counted to ten before spelling things out for him. “I’m going to have the baby in New York. Bianca already went through this, so she can help me. I don’t need or want anything from you, except for a quick divorce. I’ll leave the address on the table in the nursery, and you can send me the papers.”
That seemed to take the steam out of him. He raked a hand through his thick hair and dropped his gaze to the floor. They stood there in silence, sharing one last bittersweet moment. She looked to the side while blinking her eyes to keep tears from forming.
“I guess this is it,” he said.