Chapter 5 - The Locked Dressing Room
Before the police could be called, Senator Montgomery demanded that the matter be discussed privately in the bridal suite behind the altar. Ethan agreed, but only on the condition that Lily and the newborn came with him, refusing to let the girl out of his sight.
The heavy oak doors of the bridal suite closed, shutting out the murmuring guests and the flashing cameras of the press who had managed to slip into the foyer. Inside the room, surrounded by luxury flower arrangements and champagne buckets, the air was suffocatingly tense.
Claire sat on a silk sofa, her head in her hands, while her father paced near the fireplace. Ethan stood near the door, his dark navy tuxedo jacket discarded, his sleeves rolled up to reveal his muscular forearms as he held the baby gently in his arms, allowing Lily to sit in a warm armchair with a dry blanket draped over her shoulders.
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“Ethan, listen to reason,” Senator Montgomery pleaded, his voice low and desperate. “Claire was young. She made a mistake four years ago before she ever met you. Bringing this out into the public will ruin both our families and destroy the merger between our corporations.”
Ethan looked at the politician with pure disgust. “A mistake?” he asked softly. “A girl died in a neglected facility while your daughter wore diamond earrings and traveled Europe on your firm's money. You didn't just cover up a scandal, Senator—you abandoned a dying mother and her child.”
