Ann and Ian were whispering together, in a booth at the very back of the small, twenty-four-hour, hole-in-the-wall diner when Melanie walked up to them and took a seat across from her siblings.
“So,” she greeted, stopping Ann mid-sentence, “what was so important that you had to wake me up at dawn for breakfast?”
The two siblings looked at each other, then back to Melanie and spoke simultaneously: “Aiden.”
“Aiden?” Melanie asked, as if she didn’t recognize the name. “As in Aiden Carmichael? What about him?”
“Well,” Ian said, “we found out a few things about the man you’re getting into bed with.”
Melanie’s cheeks flamed. “Excuse me?”
“Metaphorically-speaking, Mellie,” Ann chuckled. “We know you’re not the kind of woman that sleeps her way to the top.” She rolled her eyes, but there was something insincere about the tone of her voice.
“Yes,” Ian agreed. “We just meant that the man that you are, reportedly, going into business with? Yeah, he has a few secrets that I’m pretty sure you’re going to want to hear about.”
“What secrets?” Melanie asked. “Are they about his personal life? Because if they are, I really don’t care to—”
“They concern you, Mellie,” Ann said, placing a cold hand on hers. “This is the kind of thing you’re really going to want to know before you go into business with a man like that.”
“You make it sound like he’s some kind of pervert or something,” Melanie tried to joke, but her siblings were not laughing. Not in the least. “Seriously,” she said. “What did he do that’s so terrible?”
“Read this and find out,” Ann said, sliding a folder across the table to her.
“Are these the companies you want to invest in again?” Melanie asked. “Because I told you, Ann, I’m just not sure—”
“Mellie, just read,” Ian huffed.
Melanie sighed and opened the folder. Inside, she found not the list of investment opportunities, but rather an official-looking document. Scanning through it, Melanie’s heart began to pound in her chest as her throat became tight and breathing became almost like an Olympic sport, for which she had not trained. Her face blanched as she looked back up at her siblings, who both wore grave expressions.
“Is this all true?” she asked. “Dad…he actually did this?” They both nodded, solemnly, for the first time looking genuinely sorry for her. Melanie looked back down at the document. It was part of her father’s will; a single page that stated that a portion of her inheritance (which it would seem was added to make it larger than that of either of her siblings’) was entrusted to one Aiden Carmichael at the time of her father’s death. The only reason that she had not known this information was her father’s request that Aiden keep it from her, except in cases of emergency.
Which meant, in layman’s terms, in case she failed miserably. Which she already had…only to be saved by the man himself.
“I don’t believe this,” she murmured, sitting back in her seat.
“Believe it,” Ann said. “That’s Daddy’s signature.” She pointed to their father’s sloping calligraphy. “And that’s his dear Aiden’s.” She pointed to the second signature, which was a large and clear “Aiden” written in his sloping hand. Melanie felt tears begin to swell in her eyes, her heart sick with betrayal. She cleared her throat and raised her hand to get the attention of their waitress. She ordered a latte and forced herself to smile politely before turning back to her siblings, who were still staring at her.
“Is that all?” she asked.
“Sadly, no,” Ann said, not really looking all that sad at all. She pulled out another folder—this one much thicker than the last—and slid it across the table to rest atop the other one. “Ian came across this while researching new investment opportunities. Mr. Carmichael’s name comes up a lot, but this time in particular was…rather interesting.”
Melanie opened the file and saw, at once, the name of the company that she had attempted to buy just a couple of months ago; her first investment attempt. But, it was the signature at the bottom that really caught her attention. That same “Aiden” written in sloped handwriting over the designation “Owner”. Her eyes widened as she began to flip through the documents, which named her lover as the owner and, subsequently, as the man who had ruined her investment deal.
Not only was Melanie crushed by this news, but she was also enraged, now, as well. Her cheeks began to flame the more she read and she looked up at her siblings, who were watching her like spectators at a zoo.
“Is this for real?” she asked. “Aiden…he ruined me?”
“It is,” Ann said. “We told you not to trust him, Mellie.”
“He’s a ruthless businessman. Just like our father.”
“Exactly like our father,” Ann agreed. “We’re so sorry, Mel.”
“But he…he helped me,” Melanie reminded them. “He paid off all my debts and gave me a job at his company. Why would he do that if he was just planning on ruining me?”
“He wanted to gain your trust,” Ann suggested. “Daddy used to do it all the time with new investors that he saw as threats to his own company; intelligent young men and women.” She shook her head and sighed. “I cannot even begin to tell you how many people our father ruined.”
“Aiden was his protégé,” Ian interjected. “So it’s possible that he taught that asshole to do the exact same thing. Hell, he probably wants to keep your inheritance for his own gain. He’s just using you and your brilliant mind to climb the ladder, Mellie. Don’t let him, because guys like him—guys like Dad—never change.”
Melanie was quiet for a long moment, taking in all that she had read and all that she had heard, and it wasn’t even eight in the morning. She gritted her teeth and shook her head. She didn’t want to believe it possible that Aiden would do that to her. She of course had no doubts that her father would do that, but Aiden? It just couldn’t be true!
She slipped out of the booth, grabbing her purse and her jacket. “I have to go,” she said, dropping a five on the table, before practically sprinting out of the diner. She was going to get to the bottom of this.
Right. Now.
*****