The Billionaire Reckoning

IT'S FALLING APART

What the heck is going on? Where is Wyatt? It's his grand opening for T-Brand, his new company, and I can feel the excitement buzzing in the air. But the longer I wander around the hotel venue looking for him, the more the anxiety begins to tighten my chest. The CEO reveal is imminent, and the anticipation is thick, but Wyatt's nowhere to be found. His grand debut, and he's gone MIA. Where could he possibly be?

I circle the venue again, my heels clicking against the polished floors, and ask every staff member I pass if they've seen him. But no one seems to have the faintest idea where he is. The time is slipping away, and Maddie—where is she, too? The questions swirl in my head, multiplying faster than I can chase them down.

As I walk down a corridor that leads to the hotel’s private rooms, I suddenly hear a voice. It's familiar, but I can't place it immediately. I freeze in my steps.

“Oh Wyatt, just tell her already, I hate seeing her touch you,” a voice rings out from one of the rooms.

Maddie's voice.

When did she even arrive? And why do her words hit me like that? What does she mean by "touch you"? I don’t understand. Why am I even hearing this? I can't move. The blood drains from my face, my heart pounding in my chest as all sorts of disturbing thoughts begin to flood my mind.

I press my ear against the door, trying to calm the rising panic, trying to hold onto some sense of rationality. I should leave. I shouldn’t eavesdrop. But I can't stop listening.

“My love, as I promised, it will be done today. I was only using her,” another voice—Wyatt’s—answers her.

I feel my legs weaken as I slowly step back, unable to tear my mind away from their conversation. The implications are so clear, so terrifying, that I feel dizzy.

They were talking about me. I don't want to jump to conclusions, I tell myself, but every fiber in my body is screaming at me that something is wrong. I need to get out of here. I need to breathe.

I gather every ounce of strength I have left and turn back toward the banquet hall. As I re-enter, the event is about to begin, and the MC's voice booms through the hall.

“Now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for, the CEO of the newly rising company, known for its clothes, restaurants, and technology—T-Brand. Mr. Wyatt Taylor!”

The applause from the crowd is deafening. But I don’t hear any of it. My pulse thunders in my ears. My vision blurs.

And then I see him. Wyatt.

I swear my heart stops. My breath catches in my throat, and a cold sweat breaks out across my back as I take in the sight before me. Wyatt walks to the center of the room with his arm wrapped around… Maddie. She’s there, smiling, leaning into him with that sickeningly familiar look of affection plastered across her face.

I freeze, my body locked in place, my eyes wide as I watch them.

Wyatt takes the mic from the MC, his voice smooth as silk, and his words cut straight through me.

“Hello, everyone. First, I want to thank all of you for coming today. It’s been an exciting journey, and I’m thrilled to share the next chapter of T-Brand with you. But I have an important announcement to make. As of today, Maddison Parker will be the director of T-Brand... and my fiancé.”

The world tilts.

I can’t breathe.

“What the f**k?” My voice barely makes it past my lips, choked by disbelief and hurt. My legs buckle beneath me, and I crumple to the ground, my gown pulling tight across my chest as I gasp for air. My whole body feels numb, as though it’s no longer mine to control. I can’t process what’s happening. How could he do this to me? How could I have been so blind?

Tears prick at my eyes, but I can't even find the strength to wipe them away. I want to scream. I want to collapse into myself. I feel exposed, humiliated, like I'm being torn apart from the inside.

Suddenly, I hear footsteps.

Wyatt. He’s walking toward me.

He holds a glass of champagne in his hand, his gaze cold and indifferent as he approaches. His smile is so false it might as well be a weapon. He stops right in front of me, and I can barely look at him. My heart aches, a sharp, insistent pain in my chest.

“Harley Lancaster,” he begins, his voice dripping with false affection, “you really thought I had a thing for you? Well, sorry, but you were just a stepping stone for me.” He pauses, as if savoring my pain. “But hey, I do want to thank you for something. You brought me to the love of my life, so for that, I thank you.”

And then, in one fluid motion, he pours the champagne all over my hair.

The cold liquid soaks my scalp, dripping slowly down my face and staining my dress. I feel it. The wetness is sharp against my skin, but it's nothing compared to the emptiness spreading through me. I blink, my vision clouded by both the champagne and the tears that flood down my face. How could he do this? How could I have been so stupid?

I gave him everything. My heart, my trust, my time. I helped him build this company from the ground up. He was a bartender when I met him. A bartender, and I turned him into something more, something important. But none of it mattered.

I was nothing.

Suddenly, strong hands grab me, pulling me from the floor. I flinch instinctively, but the grip is firm, unyielding. It’s security. They’re dragging me out of the banquet hall, past the guests, past the people who are still clapping and smiling like nothing is wrong. I don’t belong here anymore. My gown is ruined. My face is wet with tears. The humiliation, the betrayal, it’s unbearable.

I don’t fight. I can’t. I feel like I’m falling into a black hole. And then I catch sight of them again—Wyatt and Maddie. They’re kissing now, their bodies pressed together in a way I can’t unsee. My heart shatters a little more with every second. I can’t take it. I don’t want to see it anymore.

I turn on my heels and run out.

The night air is cold against my skin as I stumble out onto the deserted street. My mind is numb, my body heavy with the weight of it all. The world feels like it's collapsing around me. I have nothing left. No money. No phone. No sense of purpose.

My feet ache as I walk, my heels broken, leaving me barefoot on the pavement. I don’t care. I don’t care about anything anymore.

Tears blur my vision, and I can hardly see where I’m going. The city streets are empty, desolate, as though the world has forgotten me.

And then I see it. A bright light flashes in my eyes.

I barely have time to react. A car swerves into me, and before I can even scream, my body is slammed into the cold concrete.

Pain erupts through me, sharp and unforgiving. My vision darkens. My body feels like it’s shutting down. I can’t move. I can’t breathe. My thoughts grow slower, heavier.

And in that moment, I think of him. Zayne. My little brother.

The realization hits me like a wrecking ball.

Maybe... maybe it’s better if I just die. It’s not like I have anything left. No one to turn to. No one who cares.

Zayne…