Chapter 6

Cecily's POV

Only the smell of disinfectant and bleach at Oakridge Care Center could make me feel steady again.

I sat beside the narrow hospital bed, holding my father's weak, motionless hand. For two years, the steady beep of his heart monitor had been the background noise of my life.

"Hold on a little longer, Dad." I squeezed his cold fingers. "I know it's hard, but I promise I'm going to get us out of here."

It was almost evening when I returned to the Rothwell mansion. The setting sun cast long shadows across the marble foyer. The moment I stepped inside, I knew the fragile balance in that house was gone.

A mountain of Louis Vuitton luggage stood beside the grand staircase.

Then I heard her voice. A clear, pleasant laugh drifted out of the living room.

I walked slowly toward the arched doorway.

Everett sat on the velvet sofa. The possessive man who had pinned me to the door hours earlier was gone. Now he looked relaxed and attentive as he poured someone a cup of Earl Grey with a tenderness I had never seen from him.

The woman sitting close beside him was Sabine.

She was stunning. Long golden hair, flawless Parisian style, and the effortless confidence of someone born expecting the world to give her everything.

Nolan was there too. He lounged in an armchair, but instead of making one of his usual cruel remarks, he watched Sabine in focused silence with a smile on his face.

The Rothwells and Sabine's family were business rivals. For the past ten years, they had fought a brutal war for control of the tech industry.

That was why Everett's mother had forbidden any relationship between them.

But Sabine's grandmother had once lived near the Rothwells, and Sabine visited her every summer.

In many ways, Sabine had spent her childhood in this mansion. To the shareholders, she was the enemy. To Everett and Nolan, she was the blonde girl they had competed over their entire lives.

Looking at the three of them, I had never felt more like a stranger in my own home.

"Oh!" Sabine noticed me first. She rose gracefully, the heavy scent of her expensive lily perfume filling the air.

"You must be Cecily." Sabine smiled, her voice sweet as honey. She didn't offer me her hand. Instead, she leaned in and kissed both my cheeks. "Everett has told me so much about you. You're very brave to accept a financial arrangement like this. I could never marry someone without love."

The insult was wrapped so perfectly in sweetness that I couldn't call it out without looking unreasonable.

Before I could answer, Sabine turned to Everett and pressed a delicate hand to her forehead. "Ev, the jet lag is terrible. My doctor says I need complete rest when I get a migraine, along with plenty of early morning sunlight. Is the south-wing suite available?"

The south-wing suite.

My bedroom. The only private place I had in that huge, oppressive house.

I looked at Everett and waited for him to refuse. I waited for him to remember the fierce, possessive kiss we had shared that morning.

Everett set his teacup on the saucer without looking at me.

"Cecily." His voice was as impersonal as a doctor giving an order. "Have the maids pack your things. While Sabine is here, you'll move into one of the guest rooms in the north wing."

The air left my lungs.

"You want me to give up my room?" I tried to keep my voice calm, but it still shook.

"It has the floor-to-ceiling windows Sabine needs," Everett said. He finally met my eyes, and there was no trace of the heat I had seen that morning. "It's only for a few weeks. Don't make this difficult, Cecily."

Nolan gave a low whistle and swirled the amber liquor in his glass. He watched me with a dark, unreadable expression, clearly enjoying the sight of my dignity being stripped away piece by piece.

Sabine pouted and looked at me with wide, apologetic eyes. "Oh, Cecily, I don't want to inconvenience you. If the room means that much to you, I can always stay at a hotel..."

"Nonsense," Everett said immediately. "You'll stay here. Cecily won't mind."

I didn't argue. I didn't scream or lose my temper.

"Of course," I said, my voice frighteningly empty. "I'll pack."

I straightened my back and walked up the wide staircase without shedding a tear. The humiliation burning in my chest was finally hardening into something else.

I entered my bedroom--Sabine's bedroom now--and locked the door behind me. Ignoring the expensive clothes around me, I went to the back of the closet and pulled out a small travel bag I had hidden there.