Natalie Harrington, thirty-nine years old and six months pregnant, dabbed delicately at the corner of her eye with a lace handkerchief. Her pale blue maternity dress draped elegantly over the curve of her stomach, and she wore the expression of a woman who had suffered terribly but endured with grace.
At least, that was the story her lawyers had been telling for the past four hours.
Victor’s attorney, Martin Lowell, leaned toward him and spoke quietly.
“We’ve exhausted every argument,” he murmured. “If the judge rules today, the transfer happens immediately.”
Victor nodded faintly.
Nine hundred and eighty million dollars.
It wasn’t the loss of the money that crushed him—though even for a billionaire that number was staggering.
What hollowed him out was the humiliation.
Twenty-three years of marriage, and the final chapter had turned into a public spectacle. News outlets were already waiting downstairs. By evening the headline would circle the financial world: REAL ESTATE TYCOON FORCED TO PAY NEARLY $1 BILLION IN DIVORCE SETTLEMENT FOR UNBORN CHILD.
Victor stared at the pen lying on the table in front of him.
A simple black fountain pen.
In a few moments, that pen would authorize a transfer that would shatter the empire he had spent forty years building.
The Weight of Old Doubts
For most of their marriage, Victor and Natalie had shared one quiet sorrow.
They had never been able to have children.
continued on next page
For complete cooking times, go to the next page or click the Open button (>), and don't forget to SHARE with your Facebook friends.
