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12. Dresses

"Paige Claire! Get your ass in here." Richard Moore was his name. I never shook his hand and met him officially because he never liked me, but I could tell he wasn't a friendly man.

"Yes, father." She grumbled beside me as she squeezed my hand. I'm not sure if it was meant to comfort me or her.

We walked through the grand house, I was surrounded by marble and sculptures of naked women.

"Those pieces were bought to piss my mother off." Paige remarked as she noticed me staring at them.

"Father!" Paige yelled as we walked into a room, dark wood and black curtains made it seem very daunting.

A big man came out of a room attached to this one, a large glass filled with a clear liquid was in his hand.

"How dare you make decisions for a company that isn't even yours! And then you go and bring this boy back into our home!" He shouted towards the girl who was gripping my hand.

"This is no home." Paige scoffed, walking to the massive couch in the middle of the room and pulled me down onto it with her.

"If I made a choice for that company, it's the one that goes. Do you understand?" He was speaking to her like a child. I wanted to right hook him.

"No." Paige let go of my hand and stood up right in front of the drunken man.

"Excuse me?" His face was inches from hers, he was trying to intimidate her, and it wasn't working- Paige was not one to back down.

"My decisions have made you a shit ton of money, father," she spat the last word, "your decision almost lost you the company." She started stepping forward, causing the man to take steps backwards.

"And on the topic of Landon, I couldn't give two shits of what you think about him. I don't know why you feel the need to keep me from him, but I'm tired of it." She growled at him as his back hit a pool table towards the other side of the room.

Richard stood back up and leaned his head down to yell right in her face.

"I feel the need to keep him from you because you are a wh-" He started, but couldn't finish the sentence because I flew up from my seat on the couch and moved Paige out of the way to get in front of him.

I lifted my arm to have my fist meet his jaw when a pair of arms encircled my waist.

"Not worth it, Landon." Her cheek moved against my back as she spoke but my eyes never left Richards blood shot ones.

"Punch me, son. I'll sue you for everything you have." He had a smug look on his face and it fueled my anger even more.

As much as I wanted to break his nose, my mind was stuck on the hand running up and down my back.

I turned towards her and slowly lowered my arm.

"As much as I want him to be punched, I'd rather it be by some idiot in a bar when he gropes his girlfriend." She said softly, pulling my almost raised hand into hers.

"Paige Claire, do not speak of me that way." He bellowed behind me, I could feel his breath blow past me.

"Let's go." Paige pulled me out of the room and into the foyer.

I followed her like a lost puppy up the stairs and into her secret bedroom.

She fell onto the bed after I shut the door behind me.

"He shouldn't be allowed to talk to you like that." I was still fuming, clenching my fists at my sides.

"Well he does, I've put up with it for the last 9 years." She sighed, her eyes were closed.