Chapter 3

"Have to?"

I watched Marcus lock the lounge door.

He seemed to realize he had sounded too forceful and rubbed a hand over his brow.

"It's just a company document that gets renewed every year. You've never objected once in the past nine years."

"Until today, I also didn't know you'd fathered a child with your assistant."

His expression darkened. "Don't drag our marital problems into the company."

I almost laughed.

A moment ago, he had tried to use my love for Noah to force me to sign. Now he expected me to keep our personal and professional lives separate.

"What if I refuse?"

"The board is confirming next year's management structure tomorrow morning. If you back out at the last minute, everyone will think you're using the shares your father left you to punish me."

Marcus stepped closer and placed both hands on my shoulders.

I could smell another woman's perfume on his collar.

"One affair shouldn't destroy a ten-year marriage, and it certainly shouldn't destroy a company."

"One?" I stared at him. "You lied to me for an entire year and had me prepare to adopt your child."

"I know you're in pain right now." His fingers tightened. "That's why you shouldn't make any more decisions tonight."

The murmuring outside the door grew louder.

When Marcus opened the door, his face had already settled into a look of concern.

Vanessa stood in the middle of the ballroom with Noah in her arms, her eyes red from crying.

Several guests had gathered around her, and someone had draped a coat over her shoulders.

When he saw us emerge, Marcus walked straight over to the band and picked up the microphone.

"I'm sorry about what happened tonight." His voice was low and restrained. "Elena has endured a great deal over the past few years. The miscarriages and the adoption have taken a heavier toll on her than any of us realized."

I froze.

"She's emotionally overwhelmed and needs to rest," he continued. "For her protection and the baby's, the adoption process may need to be temporarily postponed."

Every eye in the room turned toward me.

No one asked him why he had fathered a child with Vanessa.

With only a few sentences, he had turned his betrayal into my breakdown.

I hurried toward him, but Marcus caught my wrist before I could reach the microphone.

"Don't make this any uglier," he whispered beside my ear. "If you keep causing a scene tonight, the adoption agency will reassess you. The board will see all of this too."

"Are you threatening me?"

"I'm protecting you," he said quietly. "Go home and sign both documents tomorrow. Noah will still be your son, and the company won't be affected."

I looked at the baby in Vanessa's arms.

She avoided my gaze and held Noah even tighter.

It felt as though my chest were being torn open, but I didn't approach her again.

I picked up my purse from the table, turned around, and left the ballroom.

Marcus didn't follow me.

He probably thought I only needed somewhere to cry and would return home before dawn.

The wind outside the hotel was bitterly cold.

I stood on the steps, my hands shaking so badly that I couldn't unlock my phone.

It took three attempts before I found the number I hadn't called in over a year.

Naomi answered quickly.

"Elena?"

The moment I heard her voice, my tears finally fell.

"I need a lawyer."

Forty minutes later, she arrived at the hotel room where I was staying.

I handed her the adoption papers and every company document Marcus had left in my purse.

Naomi didn't rush to comfort me. She examined the documents one page at a time, occasionally making notes in the margins.

"The adoption can't proceed," she said. "Marcus concealed the fact that he's the biological father. There are serious problems with these papers."

I closed my eyes as another sharp pain pierced my chest.

"What about the company?"

Naomi picked up the final proxy agreement and quickly turned to the page with the date.

She studied it for a long moment before raising her head.

"The baby isn't the only thing Marcus lied to you about."

She pushed the document toward me and tapped tomorrow's date.

"If you refuse to sign, he'll lose control of your father's company tomorrow morning."