The silence was so acute you could hear a moth flap its wings.
My father straightened and leaned back again. His gaze bore into me.
“You only have the luxury of caring about morals because of me. I do what I have to do to make sure our family is protected and the best it can be. You and your sister grew up sheltered, Vivian. You have no idea what it took for me to get to where I am today because I shielded you from the ugly truth. The number of people who laughed in my face and stabbed me in the back…it would make you sick. You think the world is rose-colored when it’s gray at best.”
“Protecting our family doesn’t mean destroying someone else’s. We don’t stoop that low, Father. It’s not who we are.”
The briefest shadow of remorse passed through his eyes before disappearing. “I’m the head of the family,” he said, his tone final. “We are who I say we are.”
The words touched my skin, cold and unfeeling. A shiver skated down my spine.
“And my relationship with Dante?” The clasp of my purse dug into my palm. “Did you not think how your actions would affect me? There’s a difference between an arranged marriage and a forced one. I would’ve had to spend my life with someone who resented me simply because you want his name in our family tree.”
“Don’t act like a martyr,” my father said. “It’s unbecoming. Your sister never complained about being married to Gunnar, and she had to move to another country.”
“She doesn’t complain because they actually love each other.”
He continued like I hadn’t spoken. “There are worse things than being a billionaire’s wife. You’re young and charming. You would’ve worn Dante down eventually. In fact, he already seemed quite smitten with you over the holidays.”
“Well, you’re wrong,” I said flatly. “It’s over, Father. I moved out of Dante’s house. We’re not getting married. And…” I glanced out the window onto the main office floor. “The company isn’t doing well.”
Because you provoked someone you shouldn’t have.
The words sat unspoken between us.
My father’s jaw tightened. He hated being reminded things were less than perfect under his watch.
“The company will be fine. We’re merely experiencing a hiccup.”
“It sounds like more than a hiccup.”
He stared at me, his ire melting into something more calculating. “Perhaps you’re right,” he said. “It might be more than a hiccup, in which case we could use Dante’s help. He’s upset now, but he has a soft spot for you. Convince him to…assist.”
Cold sank into my bones. “I told you, we broke up. He hates us. He doesn’t have a soft spot for me or anyone else in the family.”
“That’s not true. I saw the way he looked at you when your mother and I visited. Even if you broke up, I’m sure you could make him see reason if you tried hard enough.”
The cold spread to the pit of my stomach.
I stared at my father, taking in his perfectly gelled hair, expensive suit, and flashy watch. It was like facing an actor pretending to be Francis Lau instead of the man himself.
How had he morphed from the slightly corny but well-meaning parent of my childhood into the person before me?
Cold. Devious. Obsessed with money and status and determined to gain—and keep—both at any cost.
He looked the same, but I barely recognized him.
“I won’t.” My voice wavered, but my words were firm. “This is your mess, Father. I can’t help you.”
I hated how my mother and sister would be affected should Lau Jewels capsize, but I couldn’t play pawn and possession for my father anymore. Plus, they each had their own nest eggs; they would be fine, financially speaking.
I’d turned the other cheek for too long. Been too willing to go along with whatever my parents told me to do because it was easier than rocking the boat and disappointing them. For all his faults, I loved my father and my family. I didn’t want to hurt them.
But I didn’t realize until now that not speaking up when they crossed the line would hurt us more in the long run than anything else.
Disbelief filled the grooves of my father’s face.
“You’re choosing your ex-fiance over your family? Is this how we raised you?” he demanded. “To be so disrespectful and disobedient?” He spat the word out like a curse.
“Disobedient?” Indignation blew through me like a sudden gale, sweeping aside any remnants of guilt. “I’ve done everything you’ve asked of me! I went to the ‘right’ college, broke up with Heath, and played the role of perfect society daughter. I even agreed to marry a man I barely knew because it would make you happy. But I’m done living my life for you.” Emotion thickened my voice. “It’s my life, Father. Not yours. And the same way you can’t make decisions for me any longer…I can’t make excuses for you. Not anymore.”
This time, the silence was so heavy it pressed down on me like a lead blanket.
“Of course, you are free to make your own decisions,” my father finally said, his voice terrifyingly calm. “But I want you to know this, Vivian. If you walk out of this office today without making amends for your insolence, you are no longer my daughter. Or a Lau.”
His ultimatum barreled into me with the force of a runaway train, skewering my chest with a bayonet and filling my ears with the roar of blood.
The temperature dropped into subzero territory as we stared at each other, his cold fury waging silent battle with my pained determination.
There it was.
The invisible monster I’d feared since childhood, laid out like a gruesome corpse of the relationship we used to have.
I could cover it with a blanket and look away, or I could stand my ground and face it head-on.
I rose, my blood electric with fear and adrenaline as my father’s composure slipped the tiniest fraction.
He’d expected me to back down.
I’m sorry. The apology almost fell off my tongue through force of habit before I remembered I didn’t have anything to apologize for.
I wanted to stay a minute longer, to memorize his face and mourn something that’d died a long time ago.
Instead, I turned and walked out.
Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry.
My father had disowned me.
My father had disowned me, and I hadn’t tried to stop him because the price was too high.
Tears crowded my throat, but I forced them back even as a crushing sense of loneliness invaded me.
In the space of a week, I’d lost my family and I’d lost Dante.
The only thing I had left was myself.
And for now, that would have to be enough.
CHAPTER 37
Vivian
The Legacy Ball’s proximity to the chaos upending my life turned out to be a blessing in disguise. In the two days between my confrontation with my father and the gala, I threw myself into work with such fervor even Sloane, the consummate workaholic, expressed alarm.
Five a.m. wake-up calls. Dinner at the office. Lunch spent reviewing every detail and ensuring I had contingency plan upon contingency plan for everything from a citywide blackout to a brawl between guests.