Chapter 14 - The Threat
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Nathan stared at the man sitting across from him, his mind working with terrifying, calculating speed. Ray didn't want June. A man who abandons a five-year-old with a corpse doesn't suddenly develop paternal instincts. Ray wanted a payday.
"You have no parental rights," Nathan said coldly. "You aren't on her birth certificate. You abandoned her. The state terminated any potential rights you had years ago."
"Actually, the state never formally terminated my rights because they didn't know who the father was," Ray corrected smugly, pulling a folded piece of paper from his jacket. "And I'm ready to take a paternity test to prove it. Family court judges love a biological reunion story, Nathan. Especially when the big, bad billionaire uncle swooped in and took the kid without consulting the father."
Nathan didn't flinch, but internally, alarm bells were ringing. A messy, protracted custody battle in the public eye would be devastating for June. She had just started to feel safe. Dragging her into a courtroom, forcing her to see the man who abandoned her, would destroy all the progress they had made.
"What do you want, Ray?" Nathan asked, cutting through the performance. "Let's skip the loving father routine. You came to a corporate office, not a family court. Give me the number."
Ray’s smirk widened into a greedy, ugly grin.
"I knew you were a smart businessman," Ray chuckled. "I figure signing away my biological rights, avoiding a massive media circus, and letting little June stay in her fancy new mansion is worth... let's say, five million dollars."
Nathan looked at the extortionist. Five million dollars was pocket change to Nathan Cole. He could write the check right now, hand it across the desk, and Ray Miller would disappear forever. It was the most efficient solution.
But Nathan wasn't just a businessman anymore. He was a father. And you don't negotiate with men who put price tags on your children.
"You want five million dollars," Nathan repeated softly.
"Tax-free," Ray added, leaning forward. "You wire the money, I sign an ironclad NDA and a relinquishment of rights, and you never see my face again. If you don't, I go to the press tomorrow and file an injunction to rip her out of your house pending a paternity test."
Nathan leaned back in his chair, his gray eyes locking onto Ray with a look of pure, unadulterated menace.
"You have twenty-four hours to produce the paperwork," Nathan lied smoothly. "Bring it here tomorrow at noon."
Ray laughed, standing up and straightening his cheap jacket. "Pleasure doing business with you, Cole."
May you like
When the doors closed behind Ray, Nathan hit his intercom button.
"Laura," Nathan commanded. "Get David on the phone. And assemble the crisis management team in the boardroom. Now."
