Page 12 of Snow

She paused, her hand on the doorknob, and looked back at them. Her mother looked nervous, while her father shot her a cold glare.

She stared at her dad for a long moment. Then a slow, sarcastic smile curved her lips.

“Good. Because I have no intention of coming back.”

And with that, she yanked the door open and slammed it behind her.

◆◆◆

The door slammed so hard that a few of the pictures on the wall rattled.

Leonard didn’t flinch. He ran one hand down his face as if he were frustrated.

Next to him, Erica wrung her hands nervously. Her wide, frantic eyes darted to her husband.

“What are you going to do?” she hissed, barely containing her panic. “We have too much riding on Nova marrying Rick! Everything is already set. He was planning to propose next weekend.”

Leonard leaned against his desk, lacing his fingers together, his face a mask of cold calculation.

“Relax. I’ll handle it,” he said smoothly.

“But—” she started.

“I said I’ll handle it,” Leonard snapped, his voice slicing through the air like a blade.

Erica recoiled slightly but pressed on. “I’m just saying that our family’s reputation and financial future are at stake. If she backs out, we will be the laughingstock of the social circle. Not to mention what the Montgomerys would do if our daughter embarrassed their son.”

Leonard’s jaw tightened, but he forced a calm smile. “That won’t happen. I can assure you that Nova won’t let it get that far.”

He rose from the desk and moved to the window, hands clasped behind his back, staring out at the rolling green lawn that masked the rot underneath their lives.

Years ago, Leonard and Merrick, Rick’s father, quietly struck an agreement to steer their children toward marriage, knowing the union would merge business interests, political influence, and family wealth in a way that would financially benefit them both. Not to mention he owed the Montgomery family a lot of money.

Now, Nova was threatening to blow it all apart because Rick had apparently been thinking with his dick instead of his brain when he brought that slut Piper back to his place.

Leonard closed his eyes briefly, anger simmering low in his chest. He wasn’t pissed because of the cheating. He was angry at the recklessness and timing. If Nova walked away now, the fallout wouldn’t stay private, and there would be consequences.

The next few months were critical for Rick’s campaign. Donors would be watching closely before committing money, measuring not only his policies but his image. The last thing Rick needed was an infidelity rumor surfacing before the election cycle even gained momentum, especially when family values still carried enough weight to destroy a candidate before he ever reached a debate stage.

But Leonard wasn’t worried. Not yet.

“She’ll come back,” he said, voice low, almost amused. “After she’s cooled off, she’ll realize that she overreacted.”

“And if she doesn’t?”

Leonard looked his wife in the eyes. “Then we force her hand. Either way, Nova will marry Rick as planned.”

◆◆◆

Nova barely remembered the walk from her dad’s office to the driveway. She was beyond angry, although at the same time, she was hurt. Her parents had sat there, calm and composed as if Rick’s betrayal was nothing more than an inconvenient detail to smooth over, something that didn’t matter as long as appearances stayed intact.

Her grip tightened on her keys as her car came into view, but her steps faltered when she saw two familiar figures waiting for her.

She slowed her steps as she took in Rob and Wallace, who leaned against the hood of her car like a couple of bodyguards in tailored suits. She wasn’t in the mood.

Of all the people to deal with after surviving her parents’ fury, they were the last ones she expected to be waiting for her. For most of her life, they had pretty much ignored her. When they still lived in the house, they stood silently off to the side while their parents treated her like a puppet. They never stepped in and called anything out.

Her shoulders stiffened as she approached. “Did Mom and Dad send you guys out here?” she asked, hitting the unlock button on her key fob.