I went back to my desk.

I made my first call to the director of Rosewood Manor. I told him the wedding was off. Since the contract was in my name, he canceled it immediately. The 50,000 dollar deposit was refunded to my account.

I made my second call to the caterers and florists. I canceled all of them.

My third call was to my father.

“Arthur,” I said, my voice steady. “Adrian is negotiating a merger with Victoria’s father using our loan funds.”

My father did not yell. He was quiet for a long moment.

“The bridge loan has a strict covenant,” my father said. “He cannot negotiate mergers or transfer company assets without our approval. I will call a board meeting tomorrow morning at 8 AM. We will recall the loan immediately.”

Two days later, Adrian hosted a private lunch at the Peninsular Club. He had invited his key logistics investors and Victoria’s father to announce the merger. He had also invited Vivienne and Camille to show them the new empire he was building.

Adrian walked into the private room, smiling.

But the room was empty. The investors had already received the formal notification from my father’s firm that Vale Logistics was in default. They had pulled out of the meeting hours ago.

Vivienne and Camille sat in the corner, looking pale and terrified.

And on Adrian’s chair, right at the head of the table, sat the green velvet ring box.

Next to it was the certified letter demanding immediate repayment of the 3 million dollar loan.

I walked into the room, wearing a simple black suit.

“What did you do, Mara?” Adrian hissed, his face twisted in rage. “You ruined everything! The merger was supposed to save my company!”

“You wanted room to breathe, Adrian,” I said, looking him dead in the eye. “So I decided to give you a lifetime of it.”

Vivienne stood up, her pearls shaking. “You cannot do this! This is business! You are destroying my son’s life over a misunderstanding!”

“It is not a misunderstanding, Vivienne,” I replied. “It is a default.”

The door opened, and the club manager walked in, flanked by two security guards.