Chapter 2: The Number From My Childhood
I stayed on the terrace for almost five minutes after Daniel's last sentence.
Five minutes of standing under the cold night sky while the party continued behind the glass.
The music had started again.
That was the part I couldn't understand.
How could music continue after something like that happened?
How could people dance?
How could waiters carry expensive champagne through a room where a woman had just been publicly humiliated?
Then again, maybe that was exactly how the Hale family survived.
They didn't fix problems.
They covered them.
"Emma.""
Grant's voice came from behind me.
I didn't turn around.
The old version of me would have.
The old version of me would have rushed to explain.
Would have apologized.
Would have tried to save the marriage before asking whether Grant deserved saving.
But something inside me had changed when his hand hit my face.
"Are you leaving?"" he asked.
I looked out at the city.
"Yes.""
A short laugh escaped him.
"You’re being dramatic.""
I finally turned around.
His expression was calm again.
That scared me more than his anger.
Because Grant was always most dangerous when he had convinced himself he was right.
"You slapped me in front of six hundred people," I said.
His eyes moved away.
"You provoked me.""
The sentence was so familiar.
Almost practiced.
"I provoked you by defending myself?""
"You embarrassed my father.""
"No," I replied.
"Your father embarrassed himself.""
Grant stepped closer.
"Careful.""
There was that word.
A warning disguised as advice.
I stared at him.
For years, I had mistaken control for confidence.
I had mistaken fear for respect.
Not anymore.
"Do you even understand what you did?"" I asked.
His jaw tightened.
"I lost control.""
"No.""
I shook my head.
"You made a choice.""
Before he could answer, the terrace door opened.
A woman stepped outside.
Nadia.
My best friend.
The only person at the party who had followed me instead of pretending nothing happened.
Her eyes were wet.
"Emma.""
I immediately knew she had been crying.
Not because of what happened to me.
Because she felt guilty.
"I should have stopped it," she whispered.
I walked toward her.
"No.""
"But I saw Douglas corner you. I knew something was wrong.""
"Nadia, you didn't cause this.""
Grant rolled his eyes.
"Are you two seriously doing this right now?""
Nadia looked at him.
And for the first time in five years, she wasn't intimidated.
"You hit your wife.""
The silence between them was heavy.
Grant looked offended.
Like the accusation itself was an insult.
"You don't know what happened.""
"I know what everyone saw.""
He opened his mouth.
No words came out.
Because facts were harder to fight than rumors.
My phone vibrated.
I looked down.
A message from Daniel.
*Do not go back inside. Stay somewhere public. I'm sending someone.*
My heart tightened.
Someone.
That word stayed with me.
Because Daniel wasn't the type of person who sent anyone.
Not unless something serious was happening.
Grant noticed the change in my face.
"Who are you texting?""
I locked my phone.
"Nobody you need to worry about.""
His expression changed.
"You don't get to shut me out.""
I almost smiled.
The irony was unbelievable.
For five years, he had decided what I could say, who I could spend time with, what events I attended, and how I represented his family.
But now he was upset because I had one private conversation.
"I think that's exactly what I'm going to do," I said.
Grant stepped closer.
"You have no idea what you're starting.""
The words stopped me.
Not because they scared me.
Because they confirmed something.
He knew.
He knew there was something happening behind the scenes.
"You mean tonight?"" I asked.
He looked away too quickly.
"What does that mean?""
"I don't know.""
But I did.
A feeling I had ignored for months suddenly became impossible to ignore.
The unexplained meetings.
The hidden phone calls.
The way Grant and his father became quiet whenever I entered a room.
Something was happening.
Something bigger than a public humiliation.
My phone rang.
Daniel.
I answered immediately.
"Emma.""
His voice was serious.
"Listen carefully.""
I walked away from Grant.
"What is going on?""
A pause.
Then Daniel said:
"I found the reason Grant married you.""
My stomach dropped.
"What?""
"Five years ago, before your wedding, Grant wasn't supposed to inherit Hale Industries.""
The city lights blurred.
"What are you talking about?""
"He needed your family's name.""
I froze.
"My family's name?""
Daniel exhaled.
"Emma, your father left you something.""
The terrace suddenly felt colder.
Something my father left me.
Something I had never known about.
Something Grant apparently knew about.
Behind me, through the glass, I saw Grant watching.
Not confused.
Not angry.
Afraid.
And that was the moment I realized the slap wasn't the biggest betrayal of the night.
It was the distraction.
May you like
Because while everyone was watching my face...
Grant had been hiding the truth about my past.
