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I give him a forced nod, not bothering to use words to acknowledge him. Thankfully, it’s enough for my father, and he puts the blade away as he lets go of my neck, taking a step back like he didn’t just threaten his only child with a knife.

The urge to grab him by the throat and let him know exactly how I feel grows, but then I remember how dangerous my father is, and I think of Harper. If he realises how much she means to me, it will do nothing except put an even larger target on her back, and I can’t have that.

I straighten my hoodie and my baseball cap as my father takes a seat behind his desk once more, looking completely unruffled as he continues glaring at me. “I will get the contract to you for you to look it over.”

A sinking feeling sits heavy in my stomach when I realise there’s one important question I’ve not asked, and I’m almost afraid to say the words out loud, but I have to know. “Who the hell am I supposed to be marrying?”

He only says two words, but they echo around my head on repeat like a sick joke. “Tillie Langston.”

I shake my head rapidly, not able to control my emotions. “Fuck, no. It can’t be her. Why her?”

Father takes the blade out of his pocket once more and lays it on the desk, looking at me threateningly. “This isn’t up for debate, boy. It doesn’t matter why, you will accept it, no matter what. I’m finalising the terms with her father this weekend, then it will be official. We will announce that Tillie is your Betrothed, and everyone will forget about your connection to that filthy, traitorous whore. But if you refuse, I can always dispose of her myself, removing any distractions that might be preventing you from agreeing to this very lucrative deal.”

Hearing him threaten my girl only makes me struggle to keep a hold on the anger that’s very close to bursting out of me in a fit of rage, and I have to dig my nails into my palms to act as a painful distraction while I try to keep my cool.

“This weekend?” I snap. “Why so soon?”

My father shrugs his shoulders as if he doesn’t care. “Tillie came to me with an offer, as you caught her eye, and I saw an opportunity which I’m more than happy to exploit. Her father is a very rich man, and she’s his only daughter. He adores her and will do anything to make her happy, even if that means handing over much more cash than he’d like to, and a stake in his lucrative businesses.”

“I thought he was a business rival of yours,” I point out, my brain ticking over as I try to think of any excuse to get out of this.

A wicked grin spreads over Father’s face as he says, “Haven’t you heard the saying about keeping your enemies close, boy? Tillie seems to have very loose lips, so you might learn things that will benefit us in more ways than one.”

I’m suddenly regretting all the opportunities I had to kill Tillie that I never took. “I don’t want to marry Tillie,” I say, even though it won’t make a difference.

My father laughs, just as I knew he would. “Do you think I wanted to marry that bitch you call a mother? Fuck no, but I did my duty to the family, the same way you will. I don’t give a shit about your feelings, or what you want. You will do as you’re told.

“You will marry Tillie and make her happy. If you insist on keeping her, you will keep your whore hidden away until graduation, and then you’ll get rid of her for good. Your duty is to this family, and you will do what is expected of you, or so help me, I will fucking make you.”

I pull my baseball cap off and run my fingers through my hair in desperation, a million thoughts rushing through my head. I know what I need to do, but the thought makes me want to rip my fucking heart out. “Give me this weekend, so I can sort everything out with Harper, and after that, I’ll do whatever you want.”

My father glares at me, looking very much like he doesn’t want to negotiate with me at all, let alone concede this tiny thing. But he eventually relents, and I breathe a sigh of relief.

“Fine, I’ll allow you one more weekend with your whore, but on one condition… After this weekend, you will never be seen with her again. I don’t care if you fuck her in private, as long as the world thinks Tillie is the only girl for you. And you must get rid of her completely after graduation.”

My heart is racing so fast, it’s a fucking miracle we both can’t hear it. Bile rises in my throat, and I’m worried I might be about to empty my stomach contents onto my father’s office floor. I take some small breaths as I try to regain control of myself, all whilst hoping my father is oblivious to my meltdown.

I know what I have to say and do, but just the thought is tearing me apart. I’d rather peel my skin off than hurt Harper, but I don’t have a choice.

“Fine, I’ll agree to that.” The words taste like ash on my tongue, and I don’t even wait for him to dismiss me. I storm out of the office, needing to get as far away from this fucking hellhole as I can.

My ears are ringing as fury rushes through my veins with each stride I take through the halls I grew up in, even though they hold no sentimental value for me.

My mother is waiting by the door, her eyes red from where she’s been crying, a wineglass in her hand. She reaches out for me when I get close, like she wants to comfort me, but I step around her as if she’s not even there. Her sob echoes around the room, but it’s not enough to slow me down.

She knew what this fucking meeting was about, but she did nothing to warn me or to help me. A proper mother would only want what’s best for her child, to see them happy, and despite her knowing this would destroy me, she did nothing to stop it.

I know I’m being harsh thinking that, as she has absolutely no say in our family business, and I would never expect her to stand up to my father, as that would be a death sentence for her, but it still hurts. Not only am I going to be engaged to a woman I can’t fucking stand, I have to push away the girl I’m falling for.

How the hell am I going to tell Harper that I’m engaged to the bitch who has made her life miserable? She’s never going to forgive me, and I don’t fucking blame her.

Marrying Tillie is bad enough, but that fucking ever-present ticking clock just got a lot louder, and by the time it stops, I will have to cut all ties with Harper for good.

Despite not wanting to acknowledge what I’m thinking, I keep coming back to the same thought. Whatever I do is going to destroy us both, but I need to try to limit how much I hurt Harper emotionally, and there’s only one way to do that...

I have to cut ties with Harper now. Keeping her as my dirty little secret will cause her pain, and I’m certain if we continue in private, our feelings for each other will only grow. We’ll fall in love, despite having no future, because we won’t be able to stop what has already started.

She will have to watch as I parade Tillie around in public, telling everyone how in love with her I am, while my heart beats only for Harper. I’ll be forced to watch her wither away on the sidelines, while we both cling to our time in private, despite it damaging us.