Chapter 1 - The Patriarch's Reckoning
The heavy glass doors of L’Étoile, Chicago’s most exclusive restaurant, swung open, shattering the dead silence that had settled over the dining room. The sharp, rhythmic clicking of a silver-tipped cane echoed off the polished white marble floor, cutting through the tense air like a countdown.
Richard Blackwood stepped inside. At seventy-two, the patriarch of Blackwood Enterprises still moved with an intimidating, absolute authority. Flanked by two senior legal partners in charcoal suits and a four-man executive security detail, his presence alone commanded the attention of every billionaire and socialite in the room.
Noah instantly released my hand. His small sneakers clicked against the marble as he broke into a run toward the entrance, his voice ringing out pure and completely unfiltered. "Grandpa Richard!"
Ethan froze. The cruel arrogance that had masked his features just seconds ago wavered, replaced by sheer, unadulterated confusion. "Father? What are you doing here? Did this woman somehow track you down too?"
Richard didn't even glance at his son. Despite the arthritic stiffness in his right knee, the old billionaire dropped to one knee onto the hard floor, opening his arms to scoop Noah into a tight, protective embrace. "Hey there, little man," Richard murmured, his deep voice softening into a tone Ethan had likely never heard in his entire life. "Grandpa told you he’d be here, didn't he?"
Beside Ethan, Victoria turned deathly pale. Her perfect, posture faltered, her manicured fingers clutching Ethan’s tailored sleeve a little too tightly.
Richard stood up slowly, keeping a firm, reassuring hand on Noah’s shoulder. He walked over to our table, his cold, slate-gray eyes locking onto Ethan. Without uttering a word, Richard reached into his coat, pulled out a thick, worn leather folder, and slammed it onto the center of the table—right next to Ethan’s black credit card.
"Pick up your card, Ethan," Richard said, his voice dripping with icy contempt. "You don't have enough money in the world to buy back the seven years you threw away."
May you like
Ethan’s jaw tightened, his chest heaving with confusion and embarrassment. "Father, you don't understand! She abandoned me seven years ago without a word while I was lying in a hospital in London! Now she walks into my engagement dinner with a kid, trying to extort—"
"Shut your mouth," Richard commanded, the sheer authority in his tone causing the surrounding waiters to flinch. "Open the folder."
