Chapter 11 - My Husband Finally Begged Me to Save Him|
Ross arrived at my house on Friday evening carrying flowers.
Not roses.
White lilies.
My favorite.
For twelve years, he'd remembered details like that only when he wanted forgiveness.
I opened the door but didn't invite him inside.
“Lydia, please.”
I looked at the flowers.
“What's this?”
“Can we talk?”
“About Tiffany or the financial documents?”
He closed his eyes.
“Both.”
I stepped aside and allowed him into the front sitting room after confirming Poppy was spending the evening with my mother.
Ross looked around the house.
Family photographs lined the mantel.
One showed us holding Poppy in the hospital.
Another showed Ross kissing my forehead on our wedding day.
For a moment, his face softened.
“I miss this.”
I stared at him.
“Then why did you destroy it?”
He placed the flowers on the table.
“I made mistakes.”
“A mistake is forgetting an anniversary.”
“I know.”
“A mistake is sending the wrong invoice.”
“Lydia—”
“An affair, unauthorized transfers, and using my property as collateral aren't mistakes you make accidentally.”
His face crumpled.
“I was under pressure.”
“From whom?”
He looked down.
“Business partners.”
“Which partners?”
“People I shouldn't have trusted.”
I folded my arms.
“Did Delia know about Westbridge?”
He hesitated.
“Yes.”
“Did Tiffany?”
Another pause.
“Yes.”
My stomach tightened.
“And Constance?”
Ross looked toward the window.
“Mom knew some of it.”
I laughed bitterly.
“So everyone knew except your wife.”
His eyes filled with tears.
“It wasn't supposed to happen this way.”
I stared at him.
“What was supposed to happen?”
Ross sat down heavily.
“We were going to complete a transaction, repay the company, and move on.”
“What transaction?”
“The sale of a warehouse portfolio.”
I frowned.
Calloway Commercial Group had recently acquired several logistics facilities outside Chicago.
Ross had described the purchase as the company's largest investment.
“What does that have to do with my condo?”
He rubbed his forehead.
“We needed additional security for short-term financing.”
My hands went cold.
“So you offered them my property.”
“I thought you would agree once everything was explained.”
“You didn't explain anything. You prepared paperwork behind my back.”
Ross began crying.
“Lydia, please. If this collapses, I could lose the business.”
I looked at him.
“You should have thought about that before using my name.”
He reached for my hand.
I pulled away.
Then he whispered:
“I'll end things with Tiffany.”
I stared at him.
“You think this is only about Tiffany?”
“We can go to counseling.”
“Ross, you tried to give her my mother's condo.”
He lowered his head.
“And you let your family threaten me with losing Poppy.”
His expression changed.
“Mom went too far.”
“You let her.”
He said nothing.
I walked toward the door.
“Please leave.”
Ross stood.
“Lydia, I love you.”
I looked at the man I'd married.
For the first time, I didn't feel the desperate need to believe him.
“Then you should have treated me like someone you loved.”
He began moving toward the door.
Then stopped.
“There is something else.”
I waited.
His voice dropped.
“Mom isn't interested in Poppy just because she's her granddaughter.”
My heartbeat quickened.
“Then why?”
Ross swallowed.
“There's a trust.”
I stared at him.
“What trust?”
He looked at the floor.
“The one your mother created after Poppy was born.”
I felt a chill.
“Ross, what does Poppy's trust have to do with your mother?”
May you like
He didn't answer.
And suddenly, I knew Constance's demand for my daughter had been planned long before the afternoon I found Tiffany wearing my bracelet.
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