The Bride Goes Rogue (The Fifth Avenue Rebels #3)(69)
“Why would I try and cheat your father or you? What would I possibly gain? I have properties all over the five-state area.”
“I couldn’t say, but I’m assuming it has to do with the broken betrothal agreement and your daughter.” Lloyd certainly hadn’t wasted any time in gifting the property to Katherine, which was a deliberate attempt to ruin Preston’s agreement with Manhattan Surety.
“Do you honestly believe me so diabolical?”
Fucking hell. This angelic act was not fooling Preston one bit. “You abandoned my father and my family when we needed you most. You bid against me on almost every piece of property I tried to acquire during my first year as president of Clarke Holdings. You let your daughter believe she had a fiancé for an entire goddamn year! So yes, I’m quite aware what kind of a man you are, Lloyd.”
Color tinged Lloyd’s cheeks. “You think I abandoned Henry, but I did not. I tried to save him for years. I ran our business, making us both a lot of money, while your father went out and gambled it away. At some point, people don’t want to be saved. I would think you’d know a thing or two about that, considering the way your friend Forrest died this summer.”
Ice flooded Preston’s veins, his ears ringing with cold fury. “You dare bring that up to me now?”
“This is ridiculous.” Lloyd threw up his hands. “You forged a deed to steal that Twenty-Third Street property from me. If you think I won’t fight this, then you’re delusional. I’ll tie this up in court for years, so bid farewell to your Manhattan Surety project.”
Preston’s jaw clenched as his fingers squeezed the wooden armrests, imagining it was Lloyd’s neck. “Then your daughter will bid farewell to her museum there, too. Who do you think will be more forgiving? Manhattan Surety isn’t likely to hold a grudge.”
The office door flew open, surprising them both. Preston turned around to see Katherine storm inside, her movements brisk. He shot to his feet and blinked. What on earth was she doing here?
She marched toward them, not stopping until she stood next to the desk, her gaze snapping with golden fire. “I cannot believe this,” she hissed at him. “You forged a deed? You knew I was planning on putting my museum there. How could you steal this property from me?”
She’d been listening? A lump lodged in his throat as he wondered how much she’d heard, but he forced it away. This was business, not personal. His regard for her didn’t affect this decision at all. “I’m not stealing it from you. Your father stole it from me. I’m merely setting things to rights.”
“He didn’t steal it!” Katherine said, her arms flopping at her sides as if he exasperated her. “And you of all people know how much this museum means to me. I can’t believe you would do something so underhanded and cruel.”
He did know how much the museum meant to her. While at Jane Street, she often talked about her mother and her mother’s love of art, how she wanted to see that continue. He hurried to say, “And that’s why I’ve purchased a piece of land for you, one that’s bigger. It’s uptown at One Hundred and Fifty-Ninth Street—”
“I don’t want another piece of land, Preston. This one is perfect for the kind of foot traffic and public transportation a museum requires.”
Preston’s gaze flicked over to Lloyd, who was watching these proceedings carefully, his brow furrowed in thought. Preston instantly regretted having this discussion in front of her father. “May we continue this conversation later, when I’m finished here?”
“No, we’ll discuss it now.” She pointed to the deed on the desk. “Did you forge that deed?”
He didn’t answer. He couldn’t lie to her, nor could he admit the forgery.
Her expression changed, the anger quickly replaced by disappointment and hurt. It tore at Preston’s chest, though he felt entirely justified in what he’d done. “That property was always mine,” he told her.
“Not from what I overheard.” She tilted her head toward the ceiling and let out a joyless laugh. “God, I am such a fool.”
Then she started for the door, her boot heels thumping on the carpets. He began to follow her. “Katherine, wait.”
“Do not talk to me, Preston. Do not come near me or talk to me ever again.”
He exhaled heavily and dragged a hand through his hair, but she never glanced back. She went straight to the lift and disappeared inside. Turning, he went to collect his hat—but came to a halt when he saw the surprise on Lloyd’s face.
“Is there something we need to discuss?” Lloyd asked. “Because that exchange seemed quite familiar.”
“There’s nothing I need to discuss with you—now or ever. And stay out of my personal life.” He snatched his hat off the chair.
“Not to mention your presence at the art exhibit the other night. You didn’t arrive late, did you? You were there the whole time. And Mr. Jennis told me you interrupted his meeting with my daughter, encouraging her to fire him.”
“If you have something to say, then just say it,” Preston snapped. He didn’t want Lloyd arriving at the wrong conclusion. Katherine could suffer as a result.
“Have you compromised my daughter?”
“No,” he lied.
Lloyd scratched his face. “I don’t know what to believe with you. It’s clear you’ll do anything to get what you want”—he gestured to the deed—“but I should say, if you’ve hurt her in any way or stained her reputation, you will do right by her.”