After the Fall A Leap into a Stranger's Arms novel Chapter 50

“Dad, you were the one who said a hundred million was enough.” Catherine clutched the strap of her purse, feeling a wave of disappointment at how Nestor was handling things.

“That was before I knew what he was really about.” Nestor’s voice got louder. “He’s just some engineer from the old part of town. How on earth could he come up with a hundred million? That money can’t be clean. He must have stolen it, or worse. If it’s illegal, the whole family could get dragged down. Are you even thinking about what that means?”

Catherine was so angry she could barely speak. She couldn’t believe her own father looked down on Lawrence like this. She took a steadying breath. “Dad, I promise you, the money’s legit. Lawrence earned every cent. There’s nothing shady about it. I’m leaving it here, just like you asked. From now on, he and I are going to live our own life. You don’t have to worry about us anymore.”

But when Nestor saw how determined Catherine was to be with Lawrence, he snapped. The anger he’d been holding in finally boiled over.

He slapped his hand against the table, making everyone jump. “Alice, go upstairs and bring me that document from my desk.”

Alice hurried off without another word.

Catherine stared at her father, confused and a little scared. “Dad, what are you doing?”

Nestor gave her a cold, twisted smile. “Catherine, since you’re so set on marrying that poor boy, then you’re going to sign an agreement.” His tone was icy as he spelled it out for her.

“You’re giving up any claim to the Blair family inheritance. That includes the twenty percent of company shares your mother left you.”

Catherine’s face went pale. She looked at her father like she didn’t even recognize him. “Dad, you can’t be serious—”

He cut her off, his eyes hard. “You think I don’t know what’s going on? Lawrence got close to you for one reason. He wants the Blair family fortune. And I’m not about to let some outsider take even a penny from us.”

He had tested Lawrence with twenty million, and Lawrence had turned it down. To Nestor, that only meant he was holding out for more. People had warned him: with two daughters and no sons, he had to protect the family fortune from outsiders. He was convinced Lawrence was after everything, and he wasn’t about to let that happen.

Seeing Catherine fighting tears, Nestor’s tone softened just a bit. “Of course, if you ever come to your senses and divorce Lawrence, this contract means nothing. I’ll give you back your shares, every single one.”

Catherine wiped her tears away and looked him straight in the eye. “I’ll never leave him.”

Nestor let out a cold laugh and tossed the contract on the table. “Fine. You’re tough. So make your choice right now. Do you want the family fortune or that broke kid?”

Alice jumped in quickly, trying to play the good cop. “Nestor, we’re all family here. Let’s calm down. So what if Lawrence doesn’t have money? We can always help them out.”