The cheating wife and her corporate boss tried to throw me out with nothing after winning eighty million dollars live on camera without realizing I own the building
CHAPTER 2: THE BROKEN ILLUSION
The heavy oak door swung open with shocking swiftness, revealing Rodrigo Santillan standing in the doorway with his expensive silk tie slightly loosened and his expression twisted into a mask of arrogant annoyance.
He looked down at me standing there in my wrinkled dress shirt, clutching two hundred pink roses and a limited-edition Louis Vuitton shopping bag like a desperate delivery boy.
His eyes flicked from my face to the gift bags, and a slow, mocking smirk spread across his face as he realized exactly who was standing outside his office.
"Well, well, if it isn't the working man," Rodrigo drawled, leaning his shoulder casually against the doorframe while folding his arms across his tailored chest. "Did you take a wrong turn on your way back from the warehouse, Ethan? Or are you just moonlighting as a floral delivery service now?"
From deep inside the plush executive office, the sound of heels clicking against the imported hardwood floor signaled Mariana’s approach.
She stepped into view wearing a sharp, designer ivory blazer that screamed corporate power, though her immaculate face instantly contorted into a look of sheer, unadulterated irritation.
Her cold eyes scanned my exhausted frame, taking in the circles under my eyes and the stale espresso smell clinging to my collar before landing on the massive bouquet of roses.
"Ethan, what on earth are you doing here?" Mariana snapped, her voice sharp enough to slice glass as she crossed her arms defensively. "And why are you showing up at my corporate office unannounced holding all this ridiculous trash? You know I have back-to-back executive briefings all afternoon."
I stood there in complete, dead silence, feeling the eighty million dollars sitting securely in my blind trust like a heavy, comforting armor protecting my shattered heart.
The man I thought I knew, the woman I had loved and supported for eight exhausting years, stood before me looking like royalty evaluating an irritating peasant.
They had no idea that the balance of power in this entire building had shifted entirely during my morning commute on the Capital Beltway.
"I brought you a gift, Mariana," I said, my voice terrifyingly calm, stripping away every ounce of the meek, submissive husband she was accustomed to walking over. "After all, today is a very special milestone. I thought a token of my profound appreciation was long overdue."
Mariana rolled her eyes dramatically, letting out a sharp sigh of exasperation as she turned back to look at Rodrigo, who chuckled quietly at her side.
"See what I mean, Rodrigo? He’s completely dramatic when he’s sleep-deprived," Mariana complained, waving a dismissive hand in my direction as if I were an annoying stray dog. "Ethan, take your overpriced flowers and leave. We are in the middle of a critical merger discussion."
"Oh, I think you'll want to see what's parked outside on the corporate plaza before you dismiss me, Mariana," I replied, a cold, sharp smile touching the corners of my lips. "Go on, step out onto the balcony and look down at the entry circle."
Rodrigo raised an eyebrow, exchanging an amused glance with Mariana before stepping past her toward the floor-to-ceiling glass windows that overlooked the bustling Tysons Corner plaza below.
He peered down through the tinted glass, expecting to see my beat-up sedan, but what greeted his eyes instead made his smug expression vanish into absolute thin air.
Sitting directly in the VIP executive drop-off zone was the custom, hot-pink Brabus G-Wagon, glistening under the afternoon sun with its temporary dealer tags still attached.
"What in the world... is that a Brabus?" Rodrigo muttered, his voice losing its confident swagger as he leaned closer to the glass. "Who the hell drives an armored pink G-Wagon into our corporate plaza?"
"I do," I answered smoothly, stepping past them into the office and placing the Louis Vuitton bag and the roses right on the center of his mahogany conference table. "Well, technically, I bought it for Mariana as a little token of my affection. Cost a quarter-million cash, straight off the showroom floor in McLean this morning."
Mariana’s jaw dropped, her eyes darting from the luxury shopping bag on the table to the pink SUV gleaming three stories below on the concrete.
Her greedy instincts flared instantly, overriding her initial annoyance as she calculated the sheer cost of the gifts sitting right in front of her.
"You... you bought this for me?" Mariana whispered, her voice softening as a greedy, calculated smile crept back onto her face. "Ethan, how did you... I mean, did you finally get that performance bonus at your logistics firm?"
"Let's call it a windfall, Mariana," I replied, walking over to Rodrigo's plush leather executive chair and sitting down comfortably without being invited. "A very lucky stroke of fortune that completely changed my financial standing as of 1:17 PM today."
Rodrigo recovered his composure quickly, stepping away from the window and puffing out his chest as he glared down at me sitting in his chair.
"Listen here, pal, I don't know what kind of scam you're running or whose credit card you maxed out, but you can't just barge into my executive suite playing sugar daddy," Rodrigo barked, pointing a finger at my chest. "Get those tacky flowers, take your pink truck, and get the hell out of this building before I call building security."
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I didn't flinch. I didn't yell. I simply pulled my phone from my jacket pocket, unlocked the screen, and placed it face-up on the mahogany table.
"Go ahead, Rodrigo," I whispered softly. "Call security. In fact, call the building owner while you're at it. Because as of forty-five minutes ago, Montgomery Global Trust purchased the entire Vithera Logistics office park, making me your direct, undisputed landlord."
