MY WAY TO THE BILLIONAIRE'S HEART.

Chapter11

"Because Jade Kensington is many things, but stable isn't one of them. We dated for two years. I ended it when I realized she was embezzling from the company to fund her lifestyle, drugs, gambling, shopping addiction. I could have prosecuted her. Instead, I paid off her debts and asked her to leave quietly. She's hated me ever since."

"So everything she said about the merger, about you shifting blame…"

"Is partially true," Carter admitted, surprising her. "The Takahashi partnership does help insulate me from some liability. That's just smart business. But I'm not framing them. They know exactly what they're getting into, and they're being compensated accordingly. And yes, I've made hard choices about how to handle the recall situation. But every choice I've made has been aimed at minimizing harm while keeping the company solvent enough to actually make things right."

He leaned forward, his grey eyes intense. "I'm not asking you to think I'm a good person, Maeve. I'm asking you to see the difference between ruthless and evil. Between doing whatever it takes to fix a problem, and causing the problem in the first place."

"How do I know you're not lying?" The question came out desperate. "How do I know any of this is real?"

"You don't." His answer was blunt, honest. "That's the nature of trust. It's a risk. You gather information, weigh the evidence, and make a bet on someone's character." He reached across the table, his hand covering hers. The touch was warm, solid, real. "I could have anyone, Maeve. Women with more money, more connections, more polish. But I chose you because when you look at me, you don't see a bank account or a status symbol. You see a problem you want to solve. And I…" he paused, something vulnerable flickering across his face, "...I need someone who sees me like that. Who thinks I'm worth solving."

Maeve's breath caught. This was the most honest he'd been with her, and it terrified her because it felt true.

"I'm still in love with Leo," she whispered.

"I know." Carter didn't pull his hand away. "And if you choose him, I'll respect that. But Maeve, be honest with yourself, is what you feel for him love? Or is it safety? Comfort? The known quantity in a life that's been nothing but uncertainty?"

The question pierced through all her defenses.

Because he was right. What she felt for Leo was warm and comfortable and safe. It was movie nights and shared jokes and someone who knew her favorite foods.

But it wasn't fire. It wasn't challenge. It wasn't this magnetic pull that made her feel alive and terrified in equal measure.

"I need to talk to him," Maeve said, pulling her hand back. "Leo. Before I make any decisions, I owe him that."

Carter nodded slowly. "Fair enough. The offer stands until midnight. After that…" he shrugged, "...I'll choose someone else. Probably Simone. She's ruthless enough to handle the life, and she won't expect emotional connection."

The thought of Carter married to someone else sent an unexpected spike of jealousy through Maeve's chest. She shoved it down.

"Why are you giving me all this time?" she asked. "Why not just, I don't know…

…make me an offer I can't refuse? Corner me?"

His smile was sad. "Because I've done that to too many people in my life. And I'm tired of surrounding myself with people who fear me or resent me. Just once, I want someone to choose me freely. Even if…" his voice dropped, "...even if the answer is no."

Then he stood, dropped cash on the table for both coffees, and walked out of the diner.

Leaving Maeve alone with her thoughts and a decision that felt impossible.

She drove to Leo's apartment on autopilot, her mind replaying every conversation, every revelation, every moment of the last twenty-four hours.

Leo answered the door in sweatpants and an old t-shirt, his eyes red-rimmed like he'd been crying. When he saw her, relief flooded his face.

"Maeve. God, I was so worried.."

She kissed him.

Desperately, hungrily, trying to feel what she used to feel. Trying to recapture the safety and warmth and certainty that had once defined them.

Leo responded immediately, pulling her inside, kicking the door shut behind them. They stumbled to the couch, hands grasping, mouths seeking, and for a few moments, Maeve let herself believe this could be enough.

But then Leo pulled back, breathing hard, his hands framing her face.

"Wait. Maeve, wait." His eyes searched hers. "What's happening? Talk to me."

And she couldn't. She couldn't tell him about Carter's offer, about the contract waiting for her signature, about the fact that she was seriously considering marrying another man for money.

She couldn't tell him that when Carter touched her hand in the diner, she'd felt more alive than she had in months with Leo.

She couldn't tell him she was falling into something dark and complicated and possibly destructive, and part of her wanted to.

"I love you," she said instead, the words true but incomplete.

Leo's expression crumpled. "But?"

"But I don't know if love is enough anymore." The admission tore out of her. "I'm drowning, Leo. My mom, Tommy, Rita, I'm watching everyone I love suffer, and I can't fix it. I've tried so hard, and it's never enough, and I'm just so tired…"

"So you're going to marry him." Leo's voice went flat. "Carter Langston. The billionaire with the wife contest."

Maeve pulled away, standing up. "I don't know. Maybe. He's offering..."

"Fifty million dollars. Yeah, I looked it up." Leo stood too, anger replacing the grief in his eyes. "You're actually considering prostituting yourself for money."

The word hit like a slap. "Don't."

"Why not? That's what it is, isn't it? Selling yourself to the highest bidder?" Leo's voice rose. "What happened to you, Maeve? The girl I fell in love with would never…"

"The girl you fell in love with didn't have a mother with stage three cancer!" Maeve shouted back. "She didn't have a brother about to drop out of Stanford because he can't afford books! She didn't have to watch her aunt work herself into exhaustion trying to save a failing business!"

"So you're just going to abandon everyone who actually loves you? For what? Money? The chance to play dress-up in some billionaire's world?"

"It's not about the money!" The lie tasted bitter even as she said it. "It's about, about having the power to actually fix things. Carter's offering me a real job, Leo. VP of Product Development. I could implement safety changes, order recalls, save lives…"

"By marrying him? By lying to the world, by pretending to love someone you barely know?" Leo stepped closer, his expression breaking. "Maeve, please. Don't do this. We'll figure something else out. I'll get a second job, we'll start a GoFundMe, we'll…"

"It won't be enough." Maeve's voice cracked. "It's never enough. Do you know how many GoFundMes are out there for cancer treatment? Thousands. Tens of thousands. And most of them never reach their goals. People share them once and forget. We'd just be another sad story in an endless scroll."

"So this is better? Selling your soul?"

"Maybe I don't have a soul left to sell!" The words exploded out of her. "Maybe I'm just tired of being noble and broke and watching everyone suffer while I pretend that love and effort will magically fix everything. Maybe I want to be selfish for once. Maybe I want power and money and the ability to actually change things instead of just surviving them!"

Silence crashed between them.

Leo stared at her like she was a stranger. "You've already decided, haven't you? That's why you came here. Not to ask for my blessing. To say goodbye."

Maeve opened her mouth to deny it. But the words wouldn't come.

Because he was right.

She had decided. Maybe not consciously, but somewhere in the depths of her exhausted, desperate heart, she'd already chosen.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

Leo's laugh was hollow. "Yeah. Me too." He walked to the door, opened it. "I hope it's worth it, Maeve. I hope fifty million dollars and a fake marriage and corporate power are worth losing yourself."

She wanted to argue. Wanted to explain that she wasn't losing herself, she was finally finding a version of herself strong enough to do what needed to be done.

But maybe that was the same thing.

Maeve left without another word, Leo's devastated expression burned into her memory.