that he’s flown through it and dominated so far, he’s also suffocating. Colton won’t be able to handle all of this bullshit for much longer, it’s not physically possible. I mean, the amount of stress he must be under … damn. I can’t even imagine.
Making my way through the house, I have no choice but to pass the formal dining hall that Colton is using for his meeting. Last night Colton had mentioned meeting with his lawyers after Jacqueline claimed she was married to his father. I just assumed that it was going to be in the same board room I'd prepared once before. When thirty lawyers showed up, I realized Colton had called in the whole calvary—the board room was not going to cut it.
I can’t help but peek through the open door as I pass, finding Colton standing at the head of the table, head dropped between his shoulders. He's looking over the mess before him—all the strength and confidence from over the weekend completely gone now. He looks helplessly at the papers flying around the table and back to the lawyers that are trying desperately to speak over one another.
Jacqueline Vanderbilt coming in here with no pre-nup could potentially take it all. We should have seen this coming. What kind of twenty-something-year-old blonde goddess spends her time choking on old dick when she should be out on some rich dude’s fancy yacht, sipping champagne and fucking until the sun comes up? Obviously, she’s a gold digger to the most epic standard, but why accept an informal wedding with absolutely no hype? Is she that desperate for the cash?
I quickly pass the formal dining hall, sure as hell that Colton wouldn’t want me looking in on this. For them to have spent all day on this and still not have an answer, it’s not good.
What the hell was Charles thinking getting hitched to his girlfriend like that? Hell, the last time I’d heard about it, he couldn’t even remember the name of the girl who was on her knees sucking him dry. It just doesn’t make sense. Why would he do it? I know Colton had a rough relationship with his father, but surely he would have let him know that he was about to bring a new mommy into the house.
Charles doesn’t strike me as the type to make spur of the moment decisions like that. He was always calculated, he thought through and evaluated every single risk before leaping. Marrying some bimbo because she gives good head doesn’t exactly sit right. The guy had been training his son day in and day out to run his business so that one day, he’ll be able to take over. A guy who is that dedicated to ensuring the future of his legacy doesn’t just accidentally fall into a marriage. Something more is going on here.
“Right,” Colton says, his voice fading as I make my way farther down the hall. “Someone get me the credentials of the fucker who signed off on this. I want to know everything about him, every marriage he’s signed off on, every time he’s slipped up, and every fucking time he takes a shit during the day.”
Well, damn. Colton is pushing every angle to get this shit sorted out and I don’t blame him. I can’t even imagine what would happen if all of this was taken away from him. Having someone like Jacqueline Vanderbilt in charge would be a disaster. She’d destroy it all within seconds and Carrington Incorporated would be back in the hands of the Decarlo family in the blink of an eye.
I tune the meeting out and get my ass into the staff quarters because the best thing I can do for Colton right now is stay out of the way. Hell, the majority of the words those lawyers were throwing around in there completely went over my head. I’m way out of my element here.
As usual, I drop down at any available table and get stuck into my homework. I know this was Charles’ rule and he’s not exactly around to enforce it anymore, but what it comes down to is my need to graduate. He might have been a ruthless dick, but he was right about one thing–education is important. And it shows in the way Colton can stand in that room and run that meeting like a boss, completely understanding everything that’s been said. Hell, maybe if I had put that much dedication into my education over