Chapter 15

Neither man had been ready for that. Killian glared at Sebastian as if he could drill holes through his skull. "It's him. He brainwashed you. He turned you against your family."

He stepped toward Sebastian. Julian caught his arm.

Julian, quiet, eyes closed: "Killian. Stop. If she's happy, I'm done."

He looked at Sebastian. "From now on, take care of my sister. If you hurt her, I will spend every dollar I have destroying you."

Sebastian's smile was cool. "I'll take care of my own wife. You don't need to worry."

Killian stared at Julian. "Have you lost your mind? We were going to get her back—"

Julian, bone-pale, smiled a tiny, exhausted smile. "She doesn't want to. She says she's happy. I'm done getting in the way. If he hurts her, the Ashfords will bury him. Until then, he's family."

Killian snarled. "You're handing her to that piece of garbage?"

"She chose him. I respect her. That's the end of it."

Not long after, Richard died. Most of his estate went to Vivienne.

A hospice video leaked. Richard, hollowed out, weeping. "Vivi. When I think back to when you were little. Your mother adored you. I didn't protect you. I was wrong."

He died with his eyes open.

The internet dragged Vivienne for it. "She didn't even come home for her own father's deathbed. What kind of daughter is that."

"Her own father is dying and she can't be bothered. What kind of human being is that?"

"Seriously. Whatever happened in the past, you put it aside when someone's dying. Her brother was begging. That was cold."

And then somebody pulled up the old threads. The Blackwell footage. Celeste's setup. All of it, recirculated, with context. The public flipped again.

"I take it back. I take everything back. A father and brother like that? I wouldn't go either. I'd slap him on the way in."

"The gall. If they actually felt bad, they wouldn't have shown up."

Julian posted a public apology. He was annihilated. He deleted his account.

A few weeks later, the deal he had bought from Sebastian imploded. Not only did it not turn a profit, it took him down with it. The Ashford holdings began to slide. Other families smelled blood. Within the year, the Ashford name had quietly disappeared from the social map.

Sebastian was on the phone while Lucas Whitmore howled with laughter.

"Tell him he's an idiot for getting in my way, Sebastian. Tell him I hope he enjoys the losses."

Sebastian's smile was small. "He picked his way down. Regret isn't going to cover what he did to her."

Lucas, sobering: "What about Vivienne. Is she going to feel bad?"

"No. She knows."

A small pause. "Next comes Killian."

If Killian had the sense to stop, Sebastian wouldn't have to move on him. He wouldn't.

Unlike Julian, Killian was not capable of giving up. In his head, Vivienne had been his since she was a little girl. He'd had her marked out for his bride since forever.

He actually went to his knees in front of Gregory Thorne.

"Dad. Please. I finally found her. I can't live without her."

Gregory slapped him so hard he fell over. "She is married. She is pregnant. You are lusting after another man's wife. People will spit on you in the street."

Killian was on his feet in a second, red-faced. "Dad. So what if she's pregnant? Terminations exist. Just get her back. The rest goes back to how it was. And the Harrington fortune is basically hers. You get your daughter-in-law, Thorne Industries gets the leg up it needs, and we might finally knock Sebastian Harrington down a few pegs. Thorne Industries badly needs that."

That last bit was what got Gregory.

Killian walked out, eyes hard. "Harrington. You touched what was mine."

At the Harrington estate, Sebastian got the warning call. "Mr. Harrington. He's going to move."

"I know."

He hung up. Vivienne frowned, worried. "Am I making this worse for you?"

He laughed softly and pulled her into his lap. "You're worried about me. That's the best thing I've heard all week."

"It's work, that's all. I'm going on a short trip for a project. Stay home and rest."

Relief softened her shoulders. He kissed the top of her head. His eyes were cold.

It wasn't a project trip. It was bait.