Page 65 of Angels Are Falling

Stefan: Come on, Kai. No one will care if my wife joins me.

I wanted to strangle him through the phone. She was my wife.

Kai: Actually, they will. Not everyone at the magazine thinks you deserve this job. Your age and inexperience work against you. Bringing your family on a business trip will only make them question your commitment to the team, and in turn, they’ll question my judgment for putting you in charge. This project needs to succeed at all costs. You need to prove that I didn’t make a mistake by hiring you.

Three bubbles appeared. Disappeared.

Stefan: I get that, and I appreciate you taking a chance on me. But I have barely seen Amelie.

Stefan was trying to keep the frustration out of his tone, but it bled through the phone. Sooner or later, he’d catch on that being the president of Obsidian was busy work meant to keep him occupied and away from Amelie. After all, he was smart enough to receive a scholarship to a prestigious private school. Received a full ride to college as well. I couldn’t fool someone like him for long.

Luckily, Stefan looked up to me to further his ambitions. I merely needed to remind him of what was at stake.

Kai: You wanted to become the Prince of Darster. Did you not think that would require sacrifices? I didn’t get to where I am by having dinner with my family every Sunday.

Stefan: That’s because you’re busy having dinner with mine.

I laughed at my screen. I respected Stefan slightly for the jab, which wasn’t saying much. He was quicker than I’d given him credit for.

Yes, Stefan had potential. But the thing about men with potential was that they didn’t like being stagnant. It was the reason he hated his old life and why I was able to entice him with a new one. All I had to do was distract him again by sprinkling in business-savvy advice.

Kai: You’re looking at this all wrong. I scaled back to work things out with Amelie. I have this luxury because I’ve spent years building my reputation. This is your time. Establish yourself as a capable leader, come back with a strong issue, and show Amelie what you’ve been building. By then, I’ll be back to work full-time. That would be a better time to reset things between you two.

More bubbles. Stefan wanted to argue, but he also saw everything I had achieved and wanted it for himself.

Stefan: She won’t be happy about this, either, and I hate making her unhappy.

Kai: Give her space until she gets acclimated. We agreed that Amelie needs to warm up to me so we can be a family. That can only happen if we spend time together. If anything, you should be taking advantage of this window. When else can you travel by yourself and establish yourself as an industry leader?

Stefan: Maybe you’re right. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to go off on you.

Kai: I understand. Finding a work-life balance is hard. Tell you what? Take my jet to Dubai. It’s good to enjoy the small rewards to remind us why we make these sacrifices.

Stefan: Your private jet?

Kai: It’s not doing me any good sitting in a hangar.

Stefan: Wow. That’s really generous. Thank you, Kai.

Kai: My pleasure. Ruby’s assistant will work with yours to figure out the rest of the arrangements.

Stefan: We won’t let you down.

Kai: Make sure you don’t.

He read the message and accepted it, which was what I had counted on. Stefan had a gift for accepting arrangements that suited him without examining them too closely. It was the willful blindness of a man who wanted nice things and had found someone willing to hand them over. It was the byproduct of a man who lived as he thought others wanted him to. Nice house, cushy bank balance, traveling the world in a private jet. He didn’t question these things too closely because he didn’t want to. One might think that I was laying the foundation of his demise, but that wasn’t the case. I merely gave him the materials. He was the one building, brick by damning brick.

Chapter

Twenty-One

AMELIE

I folded my hands in my lap, unfolded them, and ran one finger around the edge of my water glass. It was the good glassware, picked out meticulously by Stefan to match the new china. The crystal was so thin you could see your fingerprints from the other side.

It was nearly nine thirty, and I was still the only one in the formal dining room. The candles on the table were supposed to lend a certain illicit grandeur, but instead, they mocked me with their flicker.

Dan had gone all out as per usual—pressed duck, foie gras, that heady sweetbread, amuse-bouche that tasted like the inside of a rich man’s dream.