I want you to leave Charlotte alone
Luther' POV
The moment I saw Gavin sitting in the lounge chair, tapping his foot like he owned the place, my anger burned. Beside him sat the man I could never stand, his father, Mr. Hugh, holding a glass of something strong. His presence made one thing clear: whatever Gavin wanted, it was big.
“I cannot wait to see that smug look wiped off his face,” Mateo muttered next to me, fixing his shirt collar. He had arranged this meeting three days after Gavin pulled that ridiculous stunt on my girlfriend.
“That is, if I do not lose it and walk out first,” I replied, jaw tight. Pretending to care about their offer was already testing me. As we walked to their table in one of the city’s most private clubs, my lip twitched in disgust.
“I was starting to think you had chickened out,” Gavin said the moment he saw us. His voice grated on me, but I forced a calm expression. I was not going to give him the satisfaction of getting under my skin.
“Miss your brilliant pitch? Never,” I said flatly, letting the sarcasm hang in the air. Judging by his grin, he was too dense to catch it.
“Mr. Hugh. Gavin.” Mateo gave a stiff nod before sitting opposite them. I sat next to him, giving Gavin a look that told him to get on with it. His father had yet to speak, which I was thankful for. I hated his voice almost as much as his face.
“No drinks?” Gavin asked, waving at a waitress. The way he stared at her reminded me of his old plan, to get with Charlotte and dump her like trash.
“The proposal,” I said sharply, not even looking at the waitress.
“You can stop acting like you are over her. What I did turned you into a joke of a man,” Hugh said, sipping his drink. I ignored him. I had come for business, not to waste time on old wounds.
Gavin slid a folder across the table. “Here,” he said, pushing it with two fingers.
“This the actual proposal?” Mateo asked, picking it up.
“What do you think it is, a menu?” Gavin snapped. They were clearly trying to push our buttons, but we were not biting. Mateo opened the folder, read the first page, and burst out laughing. Curious, I took it from him, and laughed too. “You want us to merge companies… and take your name?” I shook my head. “Unbelievable.”
“If you do not, your step-niece pays the price,” Hugh said casually, leaning back.
“You really think I care that much about her to agree to this madness?” I said, tapping the folder. Deep down, I did care. Charlotte was different. But I would not let them see that.
“I know you care about your brother. You would not want his marriage to fall apart when you can stop it,” Hugh added.
My eyes narrowed. “What does Stanley have to do with any of this?”
“Good question,” Mateo said, leaning forward.
Gavin smirked and nodded at his father.
“We know Stanley is your only family. And we know that despite everything, he never found real love until he met Charlotte’s mother,” Hugh said, setting his glass on the table.
“When my son makes Charlotte’s life miserable, her mother will realise you could have stopped it, but chose not to,” Hugh said smoothly. “Who do you think she’ll blame? Her husband. Your brother.”
With every word that came out of his mouth, I was reminded how low some people would sink for power.
“She’ll regret ever bringing your family into her daughter’s life,” Hugh went on. “And when she leaves Stanley, we both know he’ll fall apart. He might even blame you for destroying his marriage.”
Gavin leaned in, locking eyes with me. “And really, who could blame him?”
Mateo gave a slow clap. “Bravo. You really are proud of yourselves, huh?” he said, nodding at the pair like they were circus performers. The sad part? I knew they were right about one thing, if Stanley lost Sophie, it would crush him. But knowing my brother, he would still choose my company over himself.
“I have no idea how you made it in business with thinking this shallow,” I said, shifting my eyes between them. “This is the best plan you could come up with? You still think you can win?”
Mateo chuckled. “After all this time, you still do not realise, you never had a chance against us.”
“You both live off blackmail and lies. But that does not work on me,” I said calmly. “You had your shot seven years ago, and you still lost. Why? Because I had real friends like Mateo who had my back. And now? I see you both for what you are, fools grasping at straws.”
Their smiles started to fade.
“Do not take us lightly,” Hugh warned. “We can ruin her…”
“Play it,” I said, cutting Gavin off. Mateo already had his phone out. One tap, and the recording of Gavin’s phone call with Charlotte played out loud on the table.
The effect was immediate. Gavin’s jaw dropped. Hugh’s mouth pressed into a hard line.
“You have no idea what I can do with this,” I said, voice steady and cold. “You want to test it? I could send it to a few media outlets.”
“Or,” Mateo added with a smirk, “he could go live on ATV tomorrow and let the whole country hear it.”
The colour drained from their faces. I leaned back, enjoying the moment.
“What do you want?” Gavin asked. His voice was low, shaky.
“Now that’s more like it,” I said. “Where’s that smug face from earlier? The one you wore while dragging my only family into this mess?” Mateo added, pulling his phone out of Hugh’s reach.
“Cowards,” I said under my breath. Then I looked them both in the eye. “I want you to leave Charlotte alone. That’s all.”
I shrugged, keeping my tone casual, even if it felt strange calling her my step-niece. I needed them to believe it.
“And the recording?” Hugh asked cautiously.
In response, I ran my fingers across my lips like a zip. “My lips are sealed.”
Gavin sighed. “Fine. You win.”
“So easy,” Mateo muttered. “Almost too easy.”
“Oh, and one more thing,” I said, standing. “You’re going to return to that morning show tomorrow, and take back every word you said about dating Charlotte.”
I turned to Hugh. “You’d better stay away from my company. I’m not the naive man you tricked years ago. I’m stronger. I’m richer. And I have more allies than you. That means I can end you any time I want.”
Then I faced Gavin, who was shooting daggers with his eyes.
“And you. If I ever see you near her again, I’ll do more than release that recording. I’ll make sure you’ll never be the same.”
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