Chapter 2

Claire suddenly stepped forward and handed me a file.

"Emily, Nick and I have already worked this out," she said.

I didn't take it.

She set the file on the table and slowly pulled out the papers inside.

The words at the top made my eyes sting. Pre-Marital Family Custody Agreement.

There was another document underneath. Shareholding Proxy Confirmation.

I finally looked up at her.

"What does this mean?" I asked.

Nick spoke up. "The company's about to raise funds, and we can't have the share structure getting messy. The thirty percent you hold needs to be transferred to me for now."

I stared at him, wondering if I'd just heard him wrong.

"What did you just say?" I asked.

"It's not like I'm taking it away from you," Nick rattled off, like he'd practiced this speech a hundred times. "It's just for the funding round, a Shareholding Proxy Confirmation. Your shares will still be yours when this is over."

I stared at the papers on the table.

The first page spelled it out in black and white. Emily Grant agrees to act as a proxy for Nick Sawyer with her thirty percent stake in Summit Innovations.

By choice. As a proxy.

I let out a bitter laugh.

Eight years ago, when Nick came to me with a shabby business plan, Summit Innovations was just a tiny office he'd rented in a run-down part of town.

The first round of startup money, I put in every last cent I had.

The first payroll, I pulled all-nighters at side gigs just to cover it.

When investors humiliated him in front of everyone, I stood up and finished his pitch for him.

I was the one who registered the company's trademark.

I was the one who got the right people together to build the first version of the core software.

At his darkest time, I even bought him his first suit.

When the company finally pulled through, that's when I got my thirty percent stake.

It wasn't some gift from him. I paid for it, piece by piece, with my money, my time, and my youth.

And now, at my own engagement party, he expected me to take his kid as my own and give up my shares.

I asked him, "Is this what Mrs. Sawyer wants, too?"

Mrs. Sawyer jumped in right away. "Emily, once a woman gets married, she should focus on her family.

"Those shares won't really do you any good. Nick's the man. He's supposed to be out there building the business. If you hand the shares over to him and the company does well, isn't it all for your family anyway?"

I shot back, "And what about Claire? Is she joining our little family, too?"

Nick's face darkened.

Claire bit her lip. "I'm not here to come between you two. I just want Leo to have a dad."

I stared at her white dress that was supposed to be my engagement dress. "You claim you're not here to ruin things, but you're standing there in my engagement dress."

Claire glanced down at herself, like she'd only just realized what she was wearing.

"Nick told me you didn't like this dress, so that's the only reason I'm wearing it," Claire said softly.

I turned to Nick.

Nick's expression flickered for a split second.

"It's just a dress. Why are you so hung up on it?" he said.

Just a dress. Just a kid. Just some shares. Just some feelings.

Like if I didn't just let it go, I was the one being petty.

I picked up the agreement and flipped straight to the last page.

My name was already typed out in the signature box: Emily Grant.

A sticky note was attached right next to it.

It's Nick's handwriting. "Emily will sign today. Make sure you use the right version."

I stared at that sticky note, and suddenly everything made sense. 'So that's what this is all about,' Emily thought.

This wasn't really an engagement party. Instead it was a trap, a banquet set up just to corner me.

They wanted to use this moment. With both our families, relatives, and friends all watching, I dressed up in my gown and makeup, standing there as the "soon-to-be bride" then back me into a corner, leaving me with nowhere to run.

If I refused to sign, I'd be making the Sawyer Family lose face in front of everyone.

If I didn't acknowledge the kid as my own, I'd be seen as heartless.

If I didn't hand over my shares, I'd be the one who didn't care about the bigger picture.

They'd laid out all the knives, just waiting for me to walk right into them.

I closed the agreement and looked up at Nick. "You really think I'm going to sign this?"

Nick looked at me, and there was a quiet certainty in his eyes. "You will."

"Why?"

"Because you're not the kind of person who'd burn bridges."

So he really did know me that well. He knew how much I let slide, how soft-hearted I was, and that after loving him for eight years, I just couldn't bring myself to tear things apart in front of everyone.

And that's exactly why he had the guts to pull this on me.

I nodded. "Fine."

Nick let out a sigh of relief.

There was a smug glint in Claire's eyes.

But then Nick leaned in, his tone urgent. "The investors are doing their final due diligence next week. I've already promised them that all the shares in Summit Innovations will be under my name."

He looked at me, his voice barely above a whisper, but every word felt like a threat. "Emily, you must sign this today. No way around it."

I looked at him, and it all clicked.

This wasn't some last-minute decision. He'd already told his lies, and now he needed me to cover for him and make it all add up.