Chapter 5 - Shadows of the Marston Name
That night, Port Mercy was hit by a torrential downpour.
I sat on the plush leather sofa in Adrian’s private estate high on the cliffs overlooking the harbor. The house was a fortress—stone walls, floor-to-ceiling glass windows, and iron gates guarded by personal security. It was the house everyone in Port Mercy feared to approach, but inside, it was warm, quiet, and peaceful.
Adrian walked into the living room holding two crystal glasses of aged scotch. He handed one to me, his fingers briefly brushing against mine, sending a subtle shockwave through my skin.
"How are you holding up?" he asked, sitting on the armchair across from me.
"I feel like I'm waking up from a three-year coma," I admitted, staring into the golden liquid in my glass. "I kept asking myself today... how did I not see it? How did I not realize Cole was using me?"
"Cole is a master of manipulation," Adrian said softly. "He spent his entire life playing the charming, victimized younger brother while I did the heavy lifting for the family business. He made you feel like you needed him."
I looked up at Adrian, taking in the sharp line of his jaw and the quiet strength in his eyes. "You knew about him long before last night, didn't you?"
Adrian took a slow sip of his drink. "I knew he was skimming money two months ago. I was building a case to quietly remove him from the company without causing a public scandal that would hurt our stock price."
He paused, his eyes holding mine with intense focus. "But then I found out what he was doing to you. I saw how he made you shrink into the background, how he let your sister disrespect you, how he was planning to throw you to the financial wolves."
"Why did you care so much, Adrian?" I asked softly, the question hanging heavy in the air. "You barely spoke to me at family dinners. You always stood in the corner, looking distant."
Adrian set his glass down on the marble side table. He stood up, walked over to my sofa, and knelt down on one knee right in front of me.
"Because every time I saw you with him, Emma," Adrian said, his voice low and raspy, "I wanted to pull you away from him. I saw a woman who was brilliant, kind, and fiercely loyal, wasting her life on a coward who didn't deserve to breathe the same air as her."
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My breath hitched. "Adrian..."
"I stayed away because I respected your commitment to him," he whispered, reaching out to cup my cheek with his warm palm. "But the moment you left that ring on the seating chart... the moment you walked out those hotel doors... you weren't his anymore."
