Chapter 7 - My Father's Hidden Past
The next morning, my father came to my house.
No security.
No business partners.
No confident businessman image.
Just my father.
A man carrying a secret.
We sat at the kitchen table.
The same table where Lily had watched her mother get hurt.
My father looked older.
“Your mother and I weren't always the people you knew.”
I stayed quiet.
“When I was younger, I trusted the wrong people.”
He looked at his hands.
“I built my first company with a partner named Daniel Carter.”
I froze.
“Carter?”
My father's eyes met mine.
“Yes.”
“Ryan's father?”
He nodded.
The room became silent.
I couldn't understand.
“What does Ryan's father have to do with this?”
My father took a deep breath.
“Everything.”
Daniel Carter had been my father's closest friend.
They built a company together.
They were like brothers.
Until Daniel betrayed him.
“He stole money from the company,” my father explained.
“He blamed me for the losses.”
“What happened?”
“My reputation was damaged.”
I stared at him.
“But you recovered.”
“Yes.”
My father looked toward the window.
“But I never forgot.”
Then he revealed something I never expected.
“Ryan didn't meet you by accident.”
My blood went cold.
“What?”
“He knew who I was.”
I shook my head.
“No.”
“He approached you because you were my daughter.”
I felt like the room was spinning.
“No.”
My father reached across the table.
“Emily, I wanted to believe I was wrong.”
My eyes filled with tears.
“Ryan married me for revenge?”
My father looked devastated.
“I don't know if revenge was the only reason.”
That answer hurt even more.
Because it meant there were more layers.
More lies.
More manipulation.
I thought the affair was the worst betrayal.
I was wrong.
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Ryan hadn't just betrayed my marriage.
He had entered my life with a plan.
