Page 131 of Forty, Flirty & Framed

Before I can formulate a suitably dignified response, my phone chimes with a message from Connor.

Have you seen it?The #TheRealKarina campaign?It's everywhere.

Frown deepening, I tap over to Twitter where my feed is suddenly dominated by posts with the hashtag #TheRealKarina.

I click the trending topic and find myself staring at Karina's face.

Not her polished professional headshot, but a candid photo of her laughing.

Looking gorgeous.And free.

Completely unguarded.

The caption beneath reads…

I’m Karina Peters, and this is my real story…

No filters, no embellishments, no fabrications.

Just the truth about class barriers, credential gatekeeping, and how I fell in love with my ex's brother.(Yes, THAT brother.#KiltedCasanova) Thread: 1/25

"Oh my," Fiona murmurs, reading over my shoulder."The girl's got courage."

I scroll rapidly through the thread, heart hammering as Karina lays bare her entire history.

Her father's abandonment.Supporting her family as a teenager.

The systemic rejections that led to her desperate decision to falsify credentials.

And finally, the guilt and fear that kept her from telling me the truth until it was too late.

The final tweet in the thread stops my breath entirely:

So that's the real Karina Peters.

I know that I can be loved…that I am loved.Not for being the “right” arm-candy.Or the useful employee.Or the self-sacrificing sister or daughter.

But that I’m loved for being just who I am.

Sometimes fucked-up.Often resilient.

And totally and completely in love with a man who values integrity above all else—perhaps too much.@CallumAbernathy, if you're reading this, I'm sorry.Not for who I am, but for not trusting you with the truth sooner.#TheRealKarina

"Well," Fiona says with suspicious moisture in her eyes, "what are you waiting for?Go get her."

"I have a board meeting," I remind her, though the acquisition suddenly seems vastly less important.

"The board can wait five minutes.Check your email."

I do, finding dozens of new messages in my inbox—most significantly, one from Luke with the subject line: "WATCH THIS BEFORE YOUR MEETING."

The attached video shows Duncan MacTavish in what appears to be an unguarded moment at a private club, bragging to associates about how he manipulated the viral campaign with Richard's help.

"I've already forwarded this to the board," Fiona says casually."Along with Viktoria Peters' evidence packet.They're quite impressed with your handling of corporate espionage, by the way."

I stare at her."You've been in contact with the board?"

"I own twelve percent of Abernathy Corp shares, dear.I've been attending emergency board meetings while you were sulking."