"Secrets don't die with the ones who keep them. They haunt the living until they're forced into the light..."
Aminah Clarke's life shattered the night her fiancée, Hailee, died in a tragic car crash. Now, a year later, she is left with a book bar, a...
AHHH A DOUBLE UPLOAD!! Don't say I don't love you guys!!🤍
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Alex POV
"Father."
"Alex." Unbuttoning his suit jacket, my father settles into the plush chair across from me. With a swift wave of his hand, a waitress appeared at his side immediately. Wasting no time, he cleared his throat, preparing to order.
His tone, short and brief, "Get me the oldest bottle of scotch you have and a round of oysters." Without making eye contact with her, my father waves the young girl off.
I observe him with a practiced neutrality. The polished veneer of the upscale restaurant masks the tension between us. Brunch meetings with my father are always a delicate dance of power, a game of chess where every move is strategic. This man doesn't play to lose.
The waitress, now making her way toward the bar, vanishes from our immediate attention. My father finally turns his gaze to me, eyes cold and calculating. "Now, Alex, we need to discuss this situation with Lauren. You've managed to embarrass not just yourself but the Carrington name." I'm an embarrassment? Try having you as a father, now that's an embarrassment.
I stifle a sigh, my fingers tracing patterns on the pristine white tablecloth. Keep your cool.
"It's not about embarrassment, Father. Lauren and I have called off the engagement. I don't see why it should be anyone else's concern."
His nostrils flare, a sign of his barely contained frustration. Oh boy, here we go.
"It's everyone's concern when it involves the family name. Our reputation is at stake here. What part about that do you not understand?"
Before I could respond the waitress returns cautiously, carrying a bottle of scotch that looks older than both of us combined. She pours him a glass, and he takes a measured sip, his eyes never leaving mine. It's a familiar power play, a silent assertion of dominance.
"Alex, you must understand the consequences of your actions. We can't afford any more scandals." His words are a warning, loaded with the weight of expectations and familial duty.
Yeah cause you've already given us one too many with your sex tape fiasco.
I lean back, a deliberate nonchalance in my posture. "Father, I am not a puppet dancing on your strings. I've made my decision, and I won't let you or our 'family legacy' dictate my happiness."
His eyes harden, and for a moment, I see a flicker of something deeper than anger — disappointment. The waitress retreats, leaving us alone with the unspoken tension.
I take a deep breath, ready to defend my choices, no matter the cost.
I meet my father's intense gaze, unwavering. "Father, this isn't about the family legacy. It's about my life. My happiness. Don't you care at all about what I want?"
