sat at the table, glowing with victory, while Eleanor
o ensure a smooth transition on the Seacrest Bay project, Francisco will person
er nail in Chloe's coffin. Francisco stared down
able. "Well, with Kasey being so busy at the offic
"Chloe, since you have so much free time n
ze, their eyes wide. It was the ultimate humiliation: the lady of the
fect mask of false sympathy. "Oh, Aunt Eleanor, we
to her palms. But when she looked up, her face was
soft and agreeable. "I'd be happy
fusion, their triumphant blow landing not with a satisfying crack, but with a dull thu
were
office, a smug, self-satisfied power co
hostility, a reflection of the attitudes of the adults around him. He deliberatel
She calmly blotted th
id, her voice gentle. "Let's play a
stine, meticulously kept rose garden at the side of the house. It was Francisco's
Leo a pair of small, sharp gardening shears from the toolshed. "The prince nee
rtunity for sanctioned des
e snipped off the heads of the most beautiful, fully bloomed roses, one by one.
he prize-winning rose gard
ening, Chloe heard voices from the garden before sh
suit. Kasey was beside him, and little Leo was tuggin
Daddy!
t the air l
A flash of panic crossed his features-there and gone in an instant, quickly masked. Kasey followed his gaze and
dn't know yo
her expression calm, almost amused. "It's alright," she said, her v
cating gesture. "Chloe, Leo is still young. His father isn't around much, so
off with a sweet smile that didn't reach her eye
, Kasey's face burning with humiliation and Francisco's eyes filled wi
ading a magazine, with Leo playing at h
r of fury echoed from
om, his face purple with rage
lap. "I was just playing with Leo, dear. He said he loved the flowers, so I let
n mantra when it came to indulging the boy. It w
stful of decapitated rose st
ck a desperate explanation. His rage was choked in his throat. He couldn't yell at his precious son, the future of the Sterling dynasty. Kasey rushed in, drawn by the shouting. She saw t
trapped.
s just a taste. A small, petty revenge, yes, but deeply
bed, her phone buzzed with a message from an
orrow, 10 a.m. A discre
confirmation and then del
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