Chapter 21
He had big news? Well, so did I.
Okay, not really. But after spending the entire day pacing the house, glaring at my phone, and spiraling into a full-blown emotional meltdown, I felt entitled to something.
“You didn’t show up today.” I tried to keep my voice steady, but inside, I was crumbling.
Topher didn’t even blink. “I’m sorry I missed it, but trust me, you’ll be glad I did.”
I’ll be glad? I could feel my frustration bubbling up, ready to spill over. Glad? Let me guess. He bought a sports team? Or an island? Or maybe invented a time machine so he could skip out on more things in the future?
“You didn’t even text me to tell me you weren’t coming.
” My voice was sharper than I meant it to be.
He looked taken aback, but I didn’t care.
The words kept spilling out, and there was no stopping them.
“You’re always working. And I guess I get it.
You’ve got this big, important life. But what about the people in your life, Topher?
What about me? Was today so insignificant to you? Am I so insignificant to you?”
A small voice inside me whispered that I was right to protect myself.
This is what happens when you let your guard down.
This is what happens when you believe in love.
You lose people. I lost my parents, and I wasn’t about to let that happen again, not with him.
Not with anyone. Because losing someone you love?
It’s a kind of devastation you can’t recover from.
Topher opened his mouth, running his hands through his hair. “I was in the middle of an important meeting. I didn’t want to let you down, but I—”
I felt a bitter laugh escape. “You did let me down, Topher. But that’s the thing.
I should’ve known better.” I shook my head, trying to tamp down the devastation rising inside me.
That was why I don’t trust love. Why I don’t believe it can last. Because when you finally let your guard down, that’s when people leave. That’s when you lose them.
I looked away, blinking back the tears that threatened to spill. “I guess I’m the fool for thinking it would matter to you.”
Topher’s smile faltered. He looked taken aback, as if I had just deflated whatever news he’d been so excited to share. He opened his mouth to speak, but I wasn’t done.
“Your mom’s been messing with the Wi-Fi just to get you to take a break, and you’re so busy running the world that you didn’t even put two and two together!”
“Wait, what?”
I froze, realizing I’d just let the secret slip. His mom had been sabotaging the internet to force him to take breaks, but I hadn’t meant to throw her under the bus. I crossed my arms. “Yeah. She doesn’t want you working yourself into an early grave.”
Topher blinked, clearly thrown off. “She did what?”
“I know, shocking, right?” I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm. “But here’s the thing, Topher. It doesn’t even matter. It’s always the same. Work always comes first, no matter what’s going on with the people in your life.”
He looked at me, stunned by my outburst. He took a deep breath, raising a hand as if to stop me from continuing. “I’m sorry,” he said quickly. “But I think you’ll be happy once you hear what I have to say.”
I froze, the weight of my frustration still brewing beneath the surface, but the sincerity in his voice made me pause.
Topher stepped closer, his eyes locked on mine. “You’re right that I’ve been working. But not for me. I’ve been working for you.”
My confusion deepened. He looked so pleased with himself as he took both of my hands in his.
“What are you talking about?” I asked.
“I paid off your debt.”
My anger faltered, the words not quite registering at first. “My debt?”
He smiled, his eyes gleaming. “It wasn’t easy. It took some serious work, and I had to work with our lawyers to make a few changes to the company’s bylaws, which is why I’ve been working nonstop. But it’s gone, Kathleen. You’re free of it.”
I blinked, still trying to process. “You… paid off my debt?”
He nodded, and his smile grew even wider, as if he’d just handed me the world. “Yeah. It’s gone. No more penalties, no more interest. Everything’s wiped clean.”
I stood there, my mind struggling to catch up. How was this even possible? Could a billionaire just wave a magic wand and make things disappear? It didn’t make sense. Could he just change the bylaws of any company he wanted? Was that how the world worked?
“How?” I asked, skepticism thick in my voice. “How did you get them to waive the rule that I couldn’t pay it back early?”
He hesitated for just a second, his eyes locking onto mine. “Because I own the company.”
For a moment, the air seemed to thicken around us, the weight of his words not quite hitting me entirely yet. “You what?”
“I own the loan company. The one that holds your debt,” he said slowly, his voice soft, as if he were easing me into this reality.
I took a step back, my pulse racing, the pieces starting to fall into place. I own the company. The same loan company that had made my life so difficult for years. The one that bought my parents’ debt and had been steadily growing it, trapping me under a mountain of financial ruin.
I was frozen, as the shock gave way to a slow-burning anger. All those years of struggling under the weight of that debt, the fear of never getting out from under it. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. This was the company that had made my life so hard.
And Topher had been behind it all.