Chapter 6 - THE PERFECT WEDDING

Richard Whitmore looked twenty years older than he had that morning.

He took a folded packet from inside his jacket.

Claire stared at him.

“Dad, put that away.”

He didn’t.

Patricia grabbed his wrist.

“Richard.”

He pulled free.

“No.”

One word.

But it carried years.

Daniel took the papers.

They were printouts from a bank account.

Claire’s account.

Transfers.

Withdrawals.

Charges.

Daniel scanned the pages.

Flowers.

Designer shoes.

A second photographer.

A luxury bridal suite upgrade.

And then a series of cash withdrawals that lined up almost perfectly with Rosa’s missing paychecks.

Daniel looked up.

“You used her money for the wedding?”

Claire’s face went red.

“It wasn’t her money.”

Daniel held up the statements.

“It was money I gave you to pay her.”

“I was going to replace it.”

“When?”

“After the wedding.”

“With what?”

Claire opened her mouth.

Nothing came out.

Daniel laughed once.

“You don’t have it.”

She looked away.

“You spent all of it.”

“It’s not that simple.”

“It’s exactly that simple.”

Patricia stepped in.

“We were under enormous pressure.”

Daniel turned.

“We?”

Patricia immediately regretted the word.

Daniel stared.

“What did you do?”

“Nothing.”

Richard sat heavily in a chair.

“Patricia.”

“Don’t.”

“She deserves to know.”

“Daniel is not family yet.”

The sentence landed like a stone.

Daniel almost smiled.

Not family yet.

Good.

Richard rubbed his forehead.

“We were short on some vendor deposits.”

Daniel looked at him.

“You asked Claire for money?”

Richard shook his head.

“Patricia did.”

Patricia’s eyes flashed.

“This wedding was getting out of control.”

Daniel looked around the hall.

White roses everywhere.

Imported flowers.

Ice sculptures.

A string quartet.

A custom stage.

A hand-painted seating wall Claire had insisted was “essential.”

“How much?” Daniel asked.

Nobody answered.

“How much did you take?”

Richard whispered, “About eighteen thousand.”

Emily gasped.

Daniel stared at Claire.

“From where?”

Claire said quickly, “Not all of it was yours.”

“From where?”

Silence.

“Claire.”

She exploded.

“Fine! From the household account!”

Daniel felt his stomach drop.

“That account pays staff. Utilities. Insurance.”

“I knew there would be another deposit before anything bounced.”

“You moved eighteen thousand dollars without telling me?”

“You were paying for the wedding anyway!”

“No. We agreed on a budget.”

“A ridiculous budget.”

“One hundred and twenty thousand dollars is ridiculous?”

Claire’s jaw tightened.

“To you, maybe that sounds like a lot.”

Daniel stared at her.

There were sentences that ended relationships.

Not because they were loud.

Because they revealed an entire worldview in ten words.

To you, maybe that sounds like a lot.

Daniel had built his company from a borrowed laptop in a studio apartment.

Claire had grown up in a house with a tennis court.

He had never cared.

Until now.

“What exactly do you think I am?” he asked.

Claire looked confused.

“What?”

“A bank account?”

“Oh, stop.”

“An accessory?”

“You’re being cruel.”

“I’m being cruel?”

Claire’s eyes filled with tears.

There they were.

Perfect timing.

Daniel had seen those tears end arguments before.

He had always hated seeing her cry.

Now he just watched.

“You’re destroying me,” she whispered.

Daniel looked at her.

“No.”

His voice was calm.

“I think I’m just refusing to protect you from what you did.”

Claire’s tears vanished almost instantly.

“You want to cancel this wedding?”

“Yes.”

Her face changed.

“Fine.”

Daniel blinked.

Claire took a step closer.

“Fine. Cancel it.”

Patricia whispered, “Claire.”

“No, Mom.”

She looked Daniel directly in the eyes.

“But before you walk out there and make yourself the hero, maybe you should ask why Miguel was working this wedding in the first place.”

Daniel frowned.

“What are you talking about?”

Claire smiled.

It was the first time all day her smile scared him.

“You think that spill was an accident?”

Daniel’s pulse kicked.

“What did you do?”

Claire said nothing.

Daniel stepped forward.

“What did you do, Claire?”

She looked toward the service elevator.

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