Chapter 576

Chapter 575:

Gaston looked at the numbers. A slow, deeply proud smile spread across his face. He reached out, gripped her chin gently, and kissed her.

“You are a monster in the boardroom,” he murmured against her lips. “I love it p>

But as Jocelyn savored her victory, she had no idea that Richard Stein — desperate and out of time — was already dialing the number of a sleazy gossip reporter, ready to detonate a bomb in her life.

Rain lashed against the windows of the Washington D.C. townhouse.

Justin Collins walked through the front door and shrugged off his wet trench coat. He was exhausted — ten hours in a brutal Senate budget hearing, fighting off political sharks. His neck ached and his eyes burned.

The house was completely silent. The only light came from the dim sconces in the hallway.

He loosened his silk tie and climbed the stairs quietly, heading for the master bedroom. He didn’t want to wake Carmen if she was already asleep.

He pushed the heavy bedroom door open. The bed was empty. From the en-suite bathroom came the faint, steady sound of the shower running.

Justin let out a tired sigh. He walked over to Carmen’s vanity to take off his heavy steel watch.

As he set it down, he noticed Carmen’s beige trench coat draped hastily over the arm of the chair nearby. He picked it up to hang it in the closet — and as the fabric shifted, a small piece of thick cardstock slipped from the deep pocket and fluttered to the floor.

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘱𝘰𝘱𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘰𝘯

Justin frowned. He reached down and picked it up.

It was a business card. The paper was heavy and expensive, embossed with gold lettering.

Davis & Associates — Elite Litigation and Private Counsel.

Justin’s blood ran instantly cold.

As a Senator, he knew every major power player in the legal world. He knew exactly who Davis was. Davis was not a corporate attorney. He was the most ruthless, bloodthirsty divorce lawyer on the East Coast — a man who specialized in dismantling prenuptial agreements for high-net-worth individuals.

A deafening ringing started in Justin’s ears.

He stared at the card. His fingers clamped down, crushing the thick paper until his knuckles turned bone-white. The edges bent and cracked under his grip.

A massive, suffocating wave of paranoia crashed over him.

Carmen’s behavior over the past few days flashed through his mind all at once — the uncharacteristic quiet at dinner, the way she had quickly locked her phone screen when he walked into the room, the distant, thoughtful look that had settled behind her eyes.

She is leaving me.

The thought hit him like a fist to the gut. The air left his lungs entirely.

His mind snapped back seven years without warning. He was standing in the freezing rain outside his dorm. Carmen was looking at him with dead, empty eyes, telling him she had never loved him, telling him to get out of her life.