Page 39 of Lavish

It felt like you could hear a pin drop.

“Married? To whom?”

Daddy exhaled loudly, wiping a hand over his face, and he looked every bit of his sixty-plus years.

“I know this is a lot to ask, Serena, but I believe you can handle it. You’ve always been strong.”

She was doing it again—pushing, manipulating, pretending like this was just another thing I couldhandle.

“You’re the one who always figures things out,” she continued, her tone dripping with false warmth. “You keep it all together for this family. You’re the only one who can do this.”

“Whoam I marrying?” This was my first time raising my voice at her, and I clenched my fists.

Daddy sighed. “Look, Rena?—”

“Miles.”

I blinked, doubting what I’d heard.

“Miles? As in MilesWhitmore? Don’t make me laugh.”

Mama and Daddy showed no emotion.

“W-wait, you cannot be serious.”

“It’s not our first choice, and believe me, baby, we don’t make this decision lightly,” Daddy finally said, looking at Mama. “But this arrangement is necessary. We should…find peace with the Whitmores.”

“Necessary forwho? Did you forget what Omar did to you? You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”

“Watch your language,” Mama shouted.

“Why?” I demanded.

“Dante,” Daddy said. “We all know that the only thing more important than this family is ensuring this town’s survival.”

I frowned and shook my head. I wasnothearing this. “That doesn’t even make sense! What did Dante really say?—”

“You messed up, Serena. All the fighting with Miles put us in this position.”

I frowned at her, my eyes growing wide. “You said to destroy them! I was following your directions.”

“What’s done is done,” Mama snapped. “Dante’s threat was more than enough, and it might be the best thing for all of us. After all, Laurene and Reese were able to repair things for us with the Ashbournes.”

I narrowed my gaze. “You still hate Harold Ashbourne.”

“Doesn’t matter. We need more allies than enemies.” Mama waved away my objection. “We can’t trust Dante.”

I wanted to tell her howwrongthis was. I wanted to scream that I wouldnevermarry Miles, that she couldn’t make me do something like this. But the words wouldn’t come. Because deepdown, I knew I had no choice. Not really. Not when she’d already made the decision for me.

“We’ve already talked to him,” Mama continued. “Miles is willing. He knows what’s at stake.”

“Mama, please.” The room seemed to spin around me.“How? After everything that happened? Miles hates me—hatesErik. Audrey hates you. Daddy hates Omar. How will marrying Miles even help us?—”

“It’s done.”

“No, it’s not done.” My voice sharpened with desperation. “I want to know: what are the pros and cons of this arrangement? When was this decided? How? Why?”

Mama’s eyes narrowed, her patience clearly wearing thin. “If you refuse, you’ll lose everything,” she said, her voice flat and emotionless. “Your position in the company. I’ll strip it all from you without hesitation. And don’t think for one second that I won’t.”