My Twins Brought Me Riches

My father, the great Alistair Caddell, was dead. The cemetery air felt thick and suffocating with the scent of damp earth and wilting lilies. Rain had threatened all morning but never came, as if even the sky refused to mourn the man who had controlled my life for twenty-six years. I stood motionless in my fitted black dress with dry eyes and a blank face. I should’ve felt grief or some sort of sorrow for the man. But only a cold, hollow numbness settled deep in my chest as I watched the proceedings. My father’s final wish had been cruelly specific: his will would be read right here at the funeral, in front of everyone. One last public spectacle for the New York’s elite gathered around his grave. The lawyer, cleared his throat as the last prayers faded. “Per Mr. Caddell’s instructions, we shall now proceed with the reading of his last will and testament.” My heart hammered against my ribs. This was it. Everything I’d worked so hard for. Raymond’s warm hand rested on my lower back, steady and reassuring. My fiancé. My rock. The only person who had ever made me feel truly wanted. I leaned into him, drawing strength from the solid heat of his body. The lawyer began, his words falling like hammers in the humid air. “To my beloved second daughter, Cassandra Caddell, I bequeath the entirety of my estate, including full ownership and controlling shares of Caddell Shipping International, and all properties, accounts, and business interests. My eldest daughter, Lily, I leave the sum of one dollar…” I blinked, the world tilting violently. One dollar? Did I hear that right? I turned to Raymond to be sure I wasn’t hearing things. His face had gone white, his reassuring hand falling away from my waist in shock. “No…” The word came out in disbelief as my eyes darted to Cassandra and the smug look she was wearing. The spoiled, entitled twenty-two-year-old who had never lifted a finger in her life had become the sole inheritor of everything. I knew my father hated me for being the daughter of the woman he was forced to marry but did his hatred of me run this deep? Was I really so despised that he would hand over everything I’d worked so hard for in the past three years to a selfish, undeserving brat? Cassandra stood beside her mother, Chloe, both dressed in expensive black dresses as if they were attending a fashion show instead of a funeral. A small, mocking smile curved the brat’s lips when our eyes met. Something inside me snapped. “You bastards!” I screamed, lunging forward. Gasps erupted around me. “You tampered with the will! He would never leave everything to her!” I shoved past the mourners, fury burning through my veins as I reached the lawyer. “Show me the original documents! I want experts to look at it! This can’t be the will. You’re lying!” The man backed away in fright before Raymond grabbed my arm. “Lily, stop. Not here. You’re making a scene, please.” I ripped myself free, yelling. “No! I’m done being quiet!” I whirled on my stepmother and sister. “You two poisoned him against me for years. You manipulated this while he was weak. I know it!” Chloe’s lips curled in cold disdain. “Oh, Lily. Always playing the victim. Your father hated you because you’re the seed of that desperate w***e who trapped him. He told me on his deathbed he wished you’d died with your brother.” Cassandra laughed lightly, the sound cutting into my brain like glass. “Stop embarrassing yourself, sis. Daddy finally saw the truth. You should be grateful he even left you something.” He left me one dollar. The humiliation crashed over me in waves. My cheeks burned as the entire crowd stared—some with pity, most with judgment. Raymond’s arm wrapped tightly around my waist. “We’re leaving. Now.” I let him pull me away, my breath trembling while everything crumbled around me. The drive to the penthouse was silent at first, city lights blurring past the windows. Then the dam inside me shattered. “I tried so hard, Raymond,” I whispered, my voice breaking with tears. “For twenty-six years, I did everything to make him love me. I got straight A’s, studied business, and picked up the pieces my brother left behind. THREE YEARS! I worked for free, gave my life! To the point, I even dated the men he approved of before you. And still… I was never enough.” Tears poured down my face. My chest heavy with the weight of failure and regret. Raymond pulled over on a quiet street, turned off the engine, and pulled me across the console into his strong arms. His embrace was warm and felt like home. “You were always enough for me,” he murmured, his lips brushing my temple tenderly. “From the moment I saw you in that downtown bar where I worked, I knew. You’re brilliant, passionate, and so damn beautiful. You’ve been my hope, baby. My joy. You believed in me when no investor would. You made me want to become a man worthy of you.” I clung to him, sobbing into the curve of his neck. “How could he play such a sick and cruel game on me? He’s my father.” “Forget him, Lily. You’ll get past this like you always do because you’re stronger than you think.” I shook my head in disagreement but it made him only hold me tighter. “You are, baby. I promise you’re going to get through this.” His hands stroked down my back, then lower, fingers tracing the curve of my spine through the dress. The touch shifted from comfort into something hotter and my body instantly came alive. He ducked his head and his mouth found mine in a deep, searing kiss that tasted of salty tears. I melted into it, craving to feel wanted, to have all my troubles gone even for a brief while. His tongue teased mine, and heat pooled low in my belly as his hand slid up my thigh and found my soaked panties. He moved it gently aside and sank his fingers in and my head tipped back as aching desire replaced the pain. For those few moments, I felt alive, grinding against his deft fingers, gasping and moaning into his mouth, holding onto him as if my life depended on it and without him I would drown. When the bliss of orgasm finally hit me, all my tears had dried up and the ache of humiliation had faded to the back of my mind. With a parting kiss, we pulled apart. I slipped back into my seat, adjusted my dress and tried to catch my breath. Raymond started the car again, giving me one of his signature smiles that made my heart flip as he pulled into traffic. *** At the penthouse, Raymond changed into a casual shirt with the sleeves rolled up, revealing those strong forearms I loved, and went into the kitchen. Soon, the rich aroma of garlic, cream, and pasta filled the air. He served it to me on the couch, watching me with soft eyes as I picked at the plate. My appetite nonexistent. “You need to eat, sweetheart,” he said gently, tucking a curl of hair behind my ear. “Tomorrow’s important.” “Tomorrow?” “The meeting with Harlan Voss.” His eyes narrowed. “The top investor you promised to get me in the room with. The connection that could change everything for my company.” “Raymond… I can’t,” I said quietly. “Why?” “I’m destroyed. I basically have nothing now. I need time to process this.” His entire expression changed. The gentle man I loved vanished. “You’re joking.” “I’m not. I only need a few days to—” “You selfish b***h,” he snarled, standing up abruptly. “You know how important this is to me, and the one time I need you, you ditch me?” I recoiled as if he’d slapped me. “Selfish? I helped build your company, Raymond! I introduced you to every important contact I had. I’m not ditching you, I need a little time that’s all. Have you forgotten all the late nights I worked with you even when I was exhausted? I did that for us!” “No,” he laughed bitterly. “You did it to prove to your father you could land an eligible man instead of a poor bartender. You used me just as much as I used your connections. Now he’s dead, there’s nobody to prove to anymore, so you throw me to the side.” “Can you hear yourself right now? I’m an orphan with nothing to my name. I’m not—” “Shut up, Lily. You always think the world is against you... Maybe your father was right. Maybe you deserve what he did.” Fresh pain bloomed in my chest, sharp and vicious. Raymond could be mean when he was angry. He said things he didn’t mean. Right now was one of those times and I was too tired to engage with him. I did what I always did. I dropped the plate and stood on shaky legs. “I’m leaving.” I turned toward the door, but Raymond’s hand shot out and grabbed my wrist, hard. “We’re not done talking.” “Let go of me, Raymond.” “Sit your ass down, Lily, you don’t walk out when I’m talking to you.” “I said let go!” I yanked desperately, missing a step as my heel caught on the side of the couch. I stumbled back, suddenly free of Raymond and went down with my arms flailing to grab onto something. My back hit the cold marble floor, pain exploding in my skull as my head knocked into the edge of the glass coffee table. “Lily!” Raymond’s panicked shout was the last thing that rang out as darkness claimed me.