I pull her into my arms and band them tightly around her. “I promise. We’re going to have an incredible life, Mel, and they won’t have any part in it.”
She nestles her cheek against my chest. “I love you, Nate.”
I rest my lips against her hair, and I’m cocooned by the smell of her coconut shampoo. The scent always takes my mind to our morning routine, when she showers and I put on a pot of coffee. It’s one of the many simple daily routines that has become such an integral and gratifying part of my life. “I love you too, corazón.”
She draws a deep, shuddering breath. “I guess we’d better do this.”
We enter the boardroom together and, without saying a word to anyone, take our seats beside each other. Miranda sits across from us with her hands clasped in her lap and the faint hint of a smile on her face. To anyone who doesn’t know about the cruel, spiteful woman beneath the mask, she’d appear demure and elegant. Bryce, on the other hand, bristles with impotent rage. His clenched fists rest on the boardroom table, the shiny scar on the back of his right hand making me smirk, but he keeps his gaze lowered, not daring to look at me or his sister. He no doubt recognizes how little provocation it would take for me to lean across the table and punch him in the mouth. And that would be the least he deserves.
Melanie rolls her shoulders back and defiantly tilts her jaw, but I know my wife well enough to feel the nervous energy radiating from her.
It’s Miranda who breaks the silence. “May I ask why you’ve requested our presence here today, Mr. James?” She doesn’t even bother to glance at her daughter.
I lean back in my chair, placing my hand on Mel’s thigh beneath the table and giving her a discreet squeeze. “I think you’d be better off asking my wife that question, Mrs. Edison.”
Miranda’s lip curls, hinting at a sneer, before she regains her composure and angles her body toward Melanie. “Why are we here?”
Mel clears her throat. “There are going to be some changes at Edison Holdings.”
Bryce speaks for the first time. “What changes?” He snarls. “The business is in a trust, and we’re the trustees. You can’t make changes without our consent.”
Mel looks at me, her tongue darting out over her bottom lip. I nod, letting her know she’s got this. I went over everything with her in detail.
“New trustees are being appointed. Elijah and Mason James,” she says assertively.
“The fuck they are,” Bryce snaps.
“Yes, the fuck they are, Bryce,” she snaps right back. “Dad set up that trust to protect us all, but did you know there’s a clause that allows the trustees to be removed or the trust dissolved if the trustees misappropriate funds?”
Bryce’s brow furrows, but it’s his mother who speaks. “You can’t prove misappropriation of funds.”
Mel plants her hands on the table. “Oh yes I can. Seventeen years of business trips to Vegas. All the brand-new, top-of-the-line cars that were purchased to transport Ash and me. When was the last time Ashley or I needed either of you to give us a ride anywhere?
“Both of you have proven that you’re not fit to run Edison Holdings, and let’s face it, there’s nothing left in the trust fund to manage except the business, which is failing horribly. Paperwork has already been filed.”
Bryce snarls. “We’ll contest it.”
A deep laugh rumbles out of me, and Bryce makes eye contact for the first time since I walked into the room. “You can try, dipshit. But the contract is very clear, and even if you had grounds to refute Melanie and Ashley’s request to appoint new trustees, I would tie you up in court for the rest of your miserable life. By the time I’m done with you, you’ll be sitting on a street corner, begging for nickels and dimes.” His scowl deepens. “Alternatively, we could file criminal charges and have your ass tossed in jail for the rest of your life. Either of those options are fine with me.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Miranda says, before her jackass son can dig himself into an even deeper hole. “What does this mean for Bryce and me? For the business?”
I lean back in my chair and allow Mel to deliver the wonderful news. “As you know, the business has operated at a loss for the past six years, but Nathan and I have looked at the books, and there’s no reason it can’t be turned around with a little hard work and common sense.”
Bryce snorts, and I shoot him a warning glare that makes him clamp his lips together.
“A new independent CEO has been appointed. She’s very experienced, and she’s eager to explore some new ideas as well as—”
“So you just bring someone new into our family business and—”
I slam my fist onto the table, and Bryce flinches. “If you ever interrupt my wife again while she’s speaking, I will punch your teeth down your throat. Do you understand me?”
His face turns an unusual shade of pale, and he nods. I offer Mel a smile. “Go on, corazón.”
She smiles sweetly at me before turning her attention back to her mother and brother. “She has a lot of great ideas, and we believe she can turn the company around. Early projections suggest Edison Holdings could turn a profit again within two years.”
“So your husband’s brothers are the new trustees, and they ensure that you’re the only one who benefits from the trust?” her mother asks, her tone dripping with disdain.
Mel leans forward, keeping her voice clipped and assertive. “That is not how trusts work, Mother. Managed properly, they benefit the people they were supposed to. Elijah and Mason have no need of anything from the trust. I don’t need the trust either.”
“Not now that you have your rich husband,” Miranda taunts.
Mel’s back straightens and her jaw tenses. “I haven’t taken a cent from either of you in eleven years. I don’t care about the money, Mom. But Ashley deserves it. She deserves to finish college and concentrate on her studies without having to take two jobs to make rent. She will be the beneficiary of the trust. Which is exactly how it should be.”
“And what about us?” Bryce whines, like the pathetic man-child he is.
“Mother, you will be given a monthly allowance that will allow you to keep the house and maintain a certain lifestyle, although maybe a little more modest than you’re used to, but certainly enough to be comfortable.”
“And me?” Bryce says, his face turning almost purple and spittle flying from his mouth.
“You, my dear brother, will get exactly what you deserve.” Melanie offers him a sweet smile, her hands clasped in front of her as she stares him dead in the eye. “Nothing.”
Oh, I fucking love this woman.
Bryce opens and closes his mouth like a fish out of water.
“Relax, it’s not like you’ll be homeless,” I offer with a shrug.
He pushes back his chair, looking like he’s about to throw an almighty temper tantrum. “You can’t do this. I’m a beneficiary of Dad’s trust too.”
