Chapter 4 - THE WEDDING THAT WAS NEVER ABOUT LOVE
My engagement ring suddenly felt unbearably heavy.
I removed it and placed it on Nolan's desk.
Three carats.
Platinum setting.
Derek had proposed beneath the oak trees at Rosehaven House.
I remembered crying because I thought he had chosen the place to honor my grandmother.
Now I wondered whether he had been thinking about the property even then.
Nolan noticed the ring.
“Are you sure?”
I looked at him.
“I'm sure about ending the engagement. I'm not sure what else I ever knew.”
He didn't try to comfort me with empty promises.
Instead, he pushed a box of tissues toward me and let me cry.
Afterward, we went through the financial documents again.
Rachel explained the proposed contribution agreement in plain language.
Rosehaven House itself would remain in the family trust.
But the agreement would give Crescent Bay valuable rights over future development and certain revenues associated with the property.
It also contained provisions that could make unwinding the arrangement expensive.
Derek had described it as a routine step toward expanding Bellwether's luxury wedding division.
In reality, the agreement would benefit the company connected to Clara's brother.
“Does this mean Clara planned everything?” I asked.
“We don't know who initiated it,” Rachel said. “But her documented involvement is substantial.”
Then my phone rang.
Clara.
I stared at the screen.
Nolan looked at me.
“You don't have to answer.”
“I want to hear her lie.”
I put the call on speaker.
“Emily!”
Her voice was cheerful.
Too cheerful.
“I'm so sorry I haven't checked in. Mom had a difficult night.”
I closed my eyes.
“How is she now?”
“Still weak. The doctors are monitoring her.”
“That's terrible.”
“I know.”
She sighed dramatically.
“I'm going to miss the final dress fitting. Can you forgive me?”
I looked at the photograph from the airport.
Clara kissing Derek.
Matching luggage.
Cabo San Lucas.
“Of course.”
A pause.
“Emily, you sound strange.”
“I'm tired.”
“Wedding stress?”
“Something like that.”
Then Clara said the sentence that destroyed whatever remained of our friendship.
“Don't worry, sweetheart. I've got your back.”
For a moment, I couldn't speak.
I remembered us at thirteen, sitting on my bedroom floor and promising we would be each other's maids of honor someday.
I remembered comforting her after her first breakup.
I remembered driving through a snowstorm to help her when her car broke down.
And now she was standing in a luxury resort beside my fiancé, pretending to be the friend I had always trusted.
“Clara?”
“Yes?”
“Have you ever thought about what happens when somebody finds out you've lied to them for a long time?”
Silence.
Then she laughed nervously.
“That's a strange question.”
“Is it?”
“Emily, are you okay?”
I looked at Nolan.
He shook his head slightly.
Not yet.
So I answered.
“I'm perfectly fine.”
After I hung up, Olivia entered with an updated ownership report.
She had finally traced Crescent Bay Holdings through the corporate registration chain.
The ownership percentages were not what we expected.
Benjamin Whitfield held twenty percent.
Clara held twenty.
Derek held forty.
The remaining twenty belonged to an investment vehicle called Ashford Private Partners.
I didn't recognize the name.
Nolan did.
His expression changed immediately.
“What's wrong?” I asked.
He looked toward Olivia.
“Find out who controls Ashford.”
“Why?”
Nolan hesitated.
“Because I rejected a proposal from that firm six months ago.”
“For what?”
He turned toward me.
“They wanted to buy Northlake's stake in Bellwether.”
My heart started pounding.
“Who approached you?”
Nolan looked at the ownership report.
“Derek.”
I stared.
My fiancé had been negotiating to purchase my brother's investment position behind my back.
And according to Nolan, Derek had offered nearly twice the market valuation.
Money he didn't have.
Unless somebody else was secretly financing the deal.
Then Olivia's laptop chimed.
She had identified Ashford's beneficial owner.
Marcus Bell.
May you like
Bellwether Hospitality's chief financial officer.
The man responsible for protecting the company's money was secretly invested in the vehicle receiving it.
Related Stories
