Chapter 81

"Are you planning to sulk in that chair indefinitely?" Sebastian snaps, irritation lacing his tone.

I don’t dignify him with a response. My gaze remains fixed on the whiskey swirling in my glass, replaying how things unraveled so spectacularly with Sophia.

I’m not delusional enough to think she was being unreasonable. She reacted exactly as anyone would—someone who’s been betrayed repeatedly by the people she trusted most.

A visceral need claws at me to erase her pain. To undo every wound I inflicted. But how? When I’m the one who put them there in the first place.

"You can’t keep doing this, Ethan. If she’s made it clear she wants nothing to do with you, then back the hell off! Isabella’s throwing herself at you, for Christ’s sake. It’s not like you’re short on options," he mutters, dropping into the chair across from me.

I don’t acknowledge his idiocy. Instead, I level him with a glare. "If my mood offends you, the door’s right there."

He doesn’t get it. And I have zero interest in explaining. My entire being has rejected Isabella—rejected every woman who isn’t Sophia.

I used to despise her. Used to swear I’d never want her. Famous last words, because now she’s all I think about. She’s invaded my thoughts, my fantasies, every waking moment.

Karma’s a vicious bitch. The second I admit I want her, she’s already moved on—carrying another man’s child, no less.

I used to be the only man who’d ever touched her. The only one who knew her intimately. I took that for granted. Now, someone else knows the taste of her skin, and it guts me that Daniel gave her what I denied her during our marriage.

Shoving the thought aside, I stride to the floor-to-ceiling windows of my office. The idea of another man’s hands on her is torture. Pure, unrelenting agony.

Now I understand how she must’ve felt when I flaunted Isabella between us.

Fuck. How do I make her see I don’t want to hurt her? That I want to fix what I broke?

You want to fix it, but you still won’t admit you love her? A voice mocks. When will you realize you don’t go this far for a woman unless you’re in love with her?

I ignore it. Refuse to drown in the truth.

Yes, I feel something for Sophia. I don’t know when it started or how deep it runs. But even if I confessed it now, would she believe me? After nine years of cruelty?

The door swings open. I don’t turn.

"What’s got you in such a foul mood?" Sebastian grumbles.

I don’t need to look to know he’s talking to Nathan. We’ve been friends since diapers. We know each other’s tells better than our own.

"Sophia."

Her name whips me around. My focus locks onto Nathan.

He looks hollow. Exhausted. Defeated. The weight he’s lost in recent weeks is alarming.

"What happened?" My voice is rougher than I intend.

"I went to her for help with the company. She refused." He drags a hand down his face.

I’ve offered assistance, but he’s stubborn. The Prescotts kept their word—Sterling Corp is sinking. Without intervention, it’ll collapse within months.

Our company remains stable only because we rival the Prescotts in influence. Their withdrawal and the investor exodus barely dented us.

But I’m not naive. They’ll find another way to retaliate. And I won’t fight it. I deserve whatever hell they bring for what I did to their daughter.

"That’s why you’re so wrecked? Because she said no?" Sebastian asks, sympathy softening his tone.

Nathan exhales sharply. "No. It’s what she said after. That I wasn’t family. That I meant nothing to her."

I see the pain flash in his eyes, but I feel no pity. We were monsters to her. Her rejection is kinder than we deserve.

"What did you expect?" Sebastian mutters. "I keep asking you both that."

"I know. I don’t know why I keep hoping she’ll be the same. The old Sophia is gone. The only time you see traces of her is when she’s with Liam." Nathan slumps into a chair, defeated.

My phone rings, cutting through the tension. An unknown number. I almost ignore it, but something stops me.

"Didn’t I promise I’d make you pay?" The voice is chillingly familiar.

"What the hell do you want?" I snarl, patience nonexistent.

Damian Slade—better known as Reaper—chuckles. "Don’t you want to know who I have?"

I don’t rattle easily, but Reaper’s unhinged. His confidence sends a spike of dread through me.

"Spit it out. I don’t have time for games."

My tone is steady, but panic coils in my gut. He has someone I care about. And that thought alone is enough to unravel me.

"Since you’re so eager…" He pauses, savoring the torment. "I’ve got two lovely guests. The love of your miserable life… and the mother of your child."

My heart stutters. Stops. Then slams against my ribs like a wild thing. Sebastian and Nathan go silent, sensing the shift.

"What do you want?" My body is ice.

"Simple. Choose who lives and who dies. I’ll spare one and kill the other. Generous, no? You walk away with one instead of losing both."

Fuck. This is worse than I imagined. The man’s a psychopath.

"Tick-tock, Blackwood," he sing-songs before the line dies.

"What is it?" Sebastian demands, reading my expression.

"Damian has Sophia and Isabella." I force air into my lungs. "He’s making me choose."

"Jesus Christ!" Nathan explodes, his shout rattling the walls.

This is a nightmare.

I’ll move heaven and hell to save them both. But if it comes down to it… I already know my choice.

The real question is—can I live with the consequences?