At Leonard’s funeral, Brandon performed his role well. His voice trembled at the right moments, and he used a silk handkerchief to wipe his eyes.
But he spent much of the time scanning the room—studying the businessmen who had attended, evaluating their watches and suits, already thinking about the future.
Two days later, Olivia returned home after completing cemetery paperwork.
Her suitcases were waiting in the foyer.
They hadn’t been packed carefully. Clothes were crammed inside, shoes shoved into corners, as if someone had thrown everything together quickly just to get it out of the house.
Brandon walked down the staircase holding a glass of champagne.
He looked relaxed. Comfortable.
As if the situation had already been settled in his mind.
“It’s time for us to move on,” he told her calmly.
Olivia stood still while he explained.
Now that his father was gone, the inheritance belonged to him. Seventy-five million dollars had significantly changed his plans for the future.
And she didn’t fit the image he wanted to project anymore.
She had been helpful while his father needed care, he said. A practical arrangement. But that part of life was over.