The heir they threw away

CHAPTER TWO

The rest of the world carried on while Ethan's stopped drastically.

Jordan Marsh regarded him with a knowing grin, revealin to Ethan that he knew exactly what was happening and he regaled in it.

"Ethan," Jordan said, his voice smooth and charming. "Come in., why are you standing out there? We're celebrating."

Ethan didn't move from the spot. His gaze shifted to Simone and met her eyes for a second before she looked away coldly.. In that one second, he saw the full, ugly shape of the last four months.

"What contract?" Ethan asked shakily.

"Calloway Infrastructure," Jordan replied, his fingers tapping the glass of his champagne flute. "Twelve million. Signed, sealed, and delivered this morning. I’ve been laying the groundwork for a while."

"This morning," Ethan gasped.

"Ten-fifteen exactly. They were decisive once the right proposal was in front of them." Jordan boasted.

Ten-fifteen.

At ten-fifteen, Ethan had been sitting in a plastic chair in the Mercy General waiting room, his heart pounding with the terror of a father who thought his daughter was dying. He had been dialing Simone’s number over and over, but she'd ignored him while she was busy helping Jordan walk into his meeting.

Ethan looked at Simone. She was staring at the floor, her jaw clenched as a guilt-rideen look flushed on her face.

"Simone," Ethan called over the loud, his heart quaking. "Do you have anything to say to me?"

"Ethan, this isn't the time—"

"Simone!" He bellowed, tears gathering in his eyes, and that voice stopped the music in the room drastically.

He brushed past Jordan, grabbed her hand and marched her into the kitchen effortlessly, shutting the door so hard behind them that it vibrated throughout the house.

"Tell me what happened, now." Ethan demanded.

"Jordan needed that contract, Ethan. He has the infrastructure, the network, the scale. He can build things you can't even dream of yet." She replied with no remorse.

"I needed that contract!" Ethan’s voice cracked as he stared at her in disbelief.

"It’s not the same! Jordan has real people depending on him. This deal moves him to a tier where he can pull in national partnerships. And I—" She broke off, her gaze darting away. "We can benefit from that. Don't you see? We can finally live like people who aren't constantly drowning."

Ethan stepped toward her, his reddened eyes struggling to hold back the tears. "You called me, Simone and you told me our daughter was collapsing. You sent me to an emergency room while he walked into my meeting!" He snapped, "I have worked on this for months and you decided to believe in him and not me?!"

She tried to play it off, but she couldn't hide the guilt beneath her eyes "I needed you out of the way. I needed you not to be there." She blurted out finally.

Her words hit him right in his chest and Ethan froze. She had used his love for his child to sabotage his career completely...and she didn't feel sorry for it.

"He told you to do it," Ethan said bitterly, "didn't he?"

"He explained the stakes, and I made a decision. I have a daughter to think about, Ethan. I am tired of living in constant want and lack. I can't do this with you."

"Eight years," Ethan said, shaking his head. "Eight years I’ve been your husband. Lily is five, and she was in there calling that man's name like some god. How long, Simone? How long have you been trading our life for his?"

"Four months," she said, her voice turning cold and sharp. "Jordan is building something real and he wants me beside him while he does it. He can give Lily a world you’ve spent three years failing to provide."

Four months was the exact duration of his late nights. He had been pouring his heart, his blood, and his future into a proposal at that very kitchen table, working under the impression that he was building a home, while she had been creating a dream with someone else.

The pain of her betrayal stung him so badly that for a moment, he almost didn't feel it. He reached out to the counter, picked up his folder, and then set it back down. He didn't want it anymore because none of it mattered.

"Is that for me?" she asked, her voice tinged with a flicker of genuine guilt. "Or are you trying to make me feel something?"

"Neither," Ethan said. "It's just trash."

He walked out. of the kitchen He didn't look at Jordan, nor did he look at the silent guests at the party. He grabbed his coat to leave, but a small hand tugged at his sleeve.

"Daddy, where are you going?" Lily asked with a frown. "Jordan said we’re going to the Meridian. He said I can order anything."

Ethan knelt down slowly, his heart breaking as he stared into her eyes. She had Simone's eyes and he hated that about her now. He looked away with a sigh, resisting the urge to smash everything in the party.

"I’ll see you soon, bug," he said, his voice thick.

"But where are you—"

He didn't answer as he stood and walked out the door, closing it on the laughter behind him.

He stood in the hallway silently and thought back to nine years ago. He thought of his grandmother, her strong, veiny hand folding his over a set of heavy, gold-embossed papers.

'If you leave, Ethan, and you find that the world doesn't want you... if you ever need to reclaim your birthright, you press the button. Everything comes back to you.'

He had spent a decade running from that name. He had spent ten years trying to prove he was Ethan Cole and not a Harmon heir. Tonight, the course of his life had changed. He wasn't a man trying to build a career anymore, to hell with that.

He walked to the elevator, rode it down to the cold, lobby of the building, and stepped out into the night. He pulled out his phone, his thumb hovering over the only number that mattered.

Nora picked up instantly.

"Little brother," she said with a mix of surprise and warmth. "I was just thinking about you. I was looking at your share of Grandmother's assets, wondering how long it would be before you crawled back."

"Nora," he cut in flatly in that cold, dominant voice he had stripped off nine years ago. "I'm coming back. Tell granny."

There was a slight pause before she spoke again, "Ethan. Grandmother died last week." She said and his blood turned cold instantly. "The burial is tomorrow," Nora continued. "It’s more than just a funeral. Every partner, every shark in the industry is coming to smell the blood. They’re all positioning to eat up the remains of her empire as they assumed you'd never return to claim it."

Ethan thought of Jordan Marsh, the thief in his kitchen. He thought of the Harmon Group, his birthright, his cage, and his only weapon.

"There will be an announcement tomorrow," Ethan said, staring up at the city he secretly owned. "Tell them to save a seat for the heir."