I stand in the corner of the conference room, eating the cardboard-tasting cake as everyone congratulates my father and congratulates Nick.

After fifty-two years of hard work, my father has finally announced his retirement. And he named Nick as his successor.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise after last week when Dahlia and I were forced to watch our wedding video in front of my parents. It was the final straw that broke my father’s back, and he decided that the future of the company will not be with me at the head of it, but instead, it will be in Nick’s cold corrupt hands.

Everyone turns their attention to him as he begins to make a speech, thanking my father for his trust in him and saying that he’s going to try his best to live up to the wonderful legacy that my father started all those years ago with McMillan Worldwide Inc.

The dry crappy cake is threatening to come back up, so I sneak out of the room, tossing it into the garbage as I leave. I loosen my tie as I walk through the empty floor to my office.

Everything got all fucked up.

My future, my job, my dreams—but what hurts the most more than anything is losing Dahlia. I still can’t believe that she suggested we go through with the annulment. Yes, the video was embarrassing, but was it bad enough to throw away everything between us? Apparently, it was.

I lock the door when I’m back in my office and slump down in the chair behind my desk. My chest aches as I open my bottom drawer and pull out the cheap plastic mug from our wedding night. My heart is broken, but I still manage to smile when I look at the ridiculous picture of me and Dahlia.

After a minute of regrets, I reach for my phone with a heaviness in my heart. I want to call her. I want to talk to her and tell her that the past few weeks with her have been the best of my life. I want to tell her that I love her, and I’ve never felt this way about anyone, ever. I want to tell her I miss her, and I don’t care about having the company as long as I have her.

I dial nine numbers before I hang up the phone and sigh. She always wanted to get the annulment, and after this humiliating experience, she probably wants it more than ever.

I’m slumped over in my chair, staring down at my empty hands when the door of my office unlocks and the door swings open.

“You left my party so early,” Nick says, walking in with a triumphant smile on his face. “It’s almost as if you’re not happy for me.”

“Why do you have the key to my office?” I ask, glaring at him.

“Your office?” he says with a chuckle. “That’s cute. Didn’t you hear your father back there? This whole building and every office in it is mine now. You’re only here because I’m allowing you to be here. That is, until the papers are signed and the company is officially mine. Then you and your paid wife will be out on the streets.”

“You’re going to fire us?” I ask, feeling my body tense up.

Nick laughs as he walks over and sits in the chair in front of my desk. “I’m going to do more than that,” he says, grinning as he puts his feet on my desk. “I’m going to ban you two from the building, tell every CEO, manager, and HR department in the country that you two are toxic, and then I’m going to take that factory that your wife loves so much and turn it into an abandoned building.”

Heat flushes through my body as I listen to him. I don’t care about what he plans for me—I can take care of myself—but it kills me to know that he plans to close the Hospitech factory. I spent five amazing days there making friends with the wholesome employees and their families, seeing the good work they accomplish by manufacturing hospital equipment that saves lives, and living the small-town life, which felt more like home than Las Vegas ever did.

“Nick,” I say, trying to keep my voice steady despite the anger surging through my veins. “Don’t punish an entire town over our childhood grudge. They never did anything to you.”

“But you did,” he says, glaring at me. “All my life I tried to live up to you. Do you know what it was like living in your shadow? The girls would only talk to me to get to you.”

“You had a thick unibrow, Nick,” I say, trying not to laugh when I remember how crazy his eyebrows were. “I told you to pluck it.”

“You were the good looking, athletic, charming one,” he says, ignoring me, “and I was nothing.”

“Oh, get over it,” I say, rolling my eyes. “You get girls now, your eyebrows only look slightly ridiculous, and you’re rich. I know because you’ve been stealing money from the company.”

“I’ve been taking what’s rightfully mine,” he says, crossing his arms over his chest as his eyes harden.

“Stolen money from the company is rightfully yours?” I ask with a disbelieving laugh.

“Yes,” he says firmly. “I deserve it. This company would be nothing without me.”

“How much did you take?” I ask, leaning forward.

He grins. “Millions,” he says, clearly proud of himself. “And I deserve every last penny of it.”

“You don’t deserve any of it,” I say, shaking my head. “And you don’t deserve this promotion. You deserve to go to jail.”

“I’m not the one who’s going to be going to jail,” he says. His face turns dark as his mouth twists up in an evil smirk. “The money I stole was deposited into an account that is registered to you. And when I show your father what I’ve found, you’ll be off to jail, and I’ll be left alone to run the company the way I want to.”

“You’re sick,” I say, staring at him in disgust. He’s even worse than I thought. I seriously underestimated him, and I’ll probably be going to jail because of it.

“No,” he says as he gets up with a proud look on his face. “I’m in charge. Of everything. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m a very busy man. I have a factory to close and a town to devastate.”

A coldness grips my core as he struts to the door and leaves. This is worse than I thought.

Not only is my job and the town of Summerland on the line, but now my very freedom is on the line too. There is no way my father will believe me over Nick, especially with all of the lies I got caught telling lately.

The factory will close, Dahlia will lose her job and the town she loves, and I’ll probably be headed to jail for stealing millions from my father.

“Shit,” I mutter under my breath as I stare at the wall.

“I’m so fucked.”