Chapter 4 - THE LOCKED GATES
The news of the canceled wedding hit the financial district like a massive earthquake the very next morning.
Ethan's phone had been ringing incessantly since dawn, lighting up his mahogany desk with demands from PR managers, board members, and angry politicians.
He ignored every single one of them.
He stood by the window of his home office, staring out at the sprawling, perfectly manicured gardens below.
Down on the grass, he saw Rosa and Lily.
Rosa was no longer wearing her black-and-white maid's uniform.
Ethan had explicitly forbidden it the night before, threatening to fire the head housekeeper if he ever saw Rosa cleaning another room.
She was wearing a simple, soft blue sundress, sitting on a picnic blanket while Lily chased a yellow butterfly across the lawn.
Ethan watched the little girl laugh, the bright, joyful sound carrying up to his second-story window.
It was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard in his entire life.
A sharp knock on the heavy wooden door broke his intense concentration.
"Come in," Ethan said, turning away from the glass.
His head of security, Marcus, stepped into the room, his expression completely unreadable and professional.
"Sir, the Sterling family patriarch is at the front gate," Marcus reported, holding a heavy walkie-talkie.
"He is demanding to speak with you, and he has brought two attorneys with him."
Ethan sneered, casually unbuttoning his suit jacket and sitting down behind his massive desk.
"Keep the gates locked, Marcus," Ethan instructed coldly.
"If they attempt to trespass, call the police and have them arrested for harassment."
Marcus nodded sharply.
"And sir," Marcus added, hesitating for a fraction of a second.
"The tabloids have already started spinning a story, saying you lost your mind and broke off the engagement over a servant."
Ethan leaned back in his leather chair, a dark, dangerous smile slowly spreading across his handsome face.
"Let them spin whatever garbage they want," Ethan replied smoothly.
"By tomorrow morning, they will have a very different story to print."
Marcus bowed slightly and exited the room, closing the heavy doors behind him.
Ethan stood up and walked back to the window, watching his daughter stumble and fall into the soft grass, only to get right back up again giggling.
He had spent his entire life building a ruthless empire, crushing competitors, and hoarding wealth to protect himself from the poverty he grew up in.
He thought money was the ultimate shield against the pain of the world.
But as he watched Lily spin in circles in the sunlight, he realized none of that money actually mattered.
He would burn his entire company to the ground before he let anyone hurt them again.
He left his office, walking purposefully down the grand, sweeping staircase.
May you like
He bypassed the busy kitchen staff, ignoring their shocked whispers as the master of the house walked outside without his security detail.
He stepped onto the warm grass, feeling the morning sun on his face, and walked straight toward the picnic blanket.
