Chapter 2 FOR THE FUTURE OF MEYER'S INDUSTRIES

Chapter 2

The party was over, but the whispers still lingered in the air.

Mia moved through the thinning crowd with practiced grace, her steps measured, her chin held high. On the surface, she was poised.... her gown still immaculate, her smile still polite.... but inside, she was unraveling, thread by thread.

The ballroom, once a stage for her victory, now felt like a trap. A place where her dreams had been paraded in front of her.... only to be crushed in full view of New York's most watchful eyes.

And the painful part was that it was done by someone she had trusted with her life. Her dad.

She could hear the whispers. The looks. And their pity. But she didn't need their pity, definitely not their pity. Because their pity came with a prize, one she wasn't ready to pay.

No one asked her anything directly. They didn't have to. Their silence was its own kind of cruelty.

"Did you know?" their eyes seemed to ask.

"Are you okay?"

"Have you been replaced?"

"She might not be good enough"

Mia didn't flinch. She didn't let it get to her because, they weren't her problem. She Stood tall with her shoulders back, her chest open, and her spine straight. She made sure to Maintain direct eye contact with anyone that smiled at her.

She walked past a cluster of socialites pretending not to stare. Past a photographer who had clearly stayed behind for more than just ambiance shots.

When she walked past Beatrice Stone, a longtime family friend whose affection had always felt more like surveillance.

Beatrice's voice came sugar-sweet and sharp, like a knife dipped in honey. "Darling, what an unexpected turn of events!"

Mia turned to her, calm as glass. "My father has always been like that. Always been unpredictable.," her voice came out smooth and clear, without hesitation. "That was how he was able to maintain and grow such a large empire. Don't you think?"

Beatrice chuckled awkwardly, unsure how to respond. Mia didn't wait for her to find the right words. She kept walking.

Each step was heavier than the last. Her heels clicked against the polished floor like a slow countdown.

When the final guests drifted out and the last echoes of music faded into silence, she was left standing in the bones of her own celebration... glittering lights dimmed, empty champagne flutes still scattered across tables, floral arrangements wilting under the weight of forgotten admiration.

She heard the door open behind her. She didn't have to turn, she already knew who it was.

"Mia," Samuel's voice was gentler than it had been all evening. Like he suddenly remembered he had a daughter.

She turned slowly, her face unreadable. "Enjoy the show?"

He sighed. "Can we talk?"

Mia raised a brow but still followed him without a word. Of course he'd want to talk. Do a damage control, or try to make a fool out of her again.

They walked down the long hallway in silence, past portraits of generations who had built their wealth brick by brick.... men in suits. The legacy she thought she would one day lead.

Samuel pushed open the heavy double doors of his office. The room was warm with amber light, lined with towering bookshelves and the familiar scent of leather and old money.

But tonight, it felt different. It felt smaller and a lot colder.

He leaned against the edge of his desk. "I didn't mean for it to happen this way."

Mia folded her arms over her chest, as her eyes focused on him. "You didn't mean for it to happen at all, or you didn't mean for me to find out like this?"

He didn't answer right away. He just looked at her.... the way a CEO looks at a problem. Calm. Calculated.

"I was going to tell you," he said finally. "I just... I needed the right time."

She let out a quiet laugh. It was short, humorless, mocking. What did he see as? A fool? A child?

"The right time? Of all days, you had to pick my birthday. My event. The event you specifically told me to make special.... to drop that you have a secret son?"

He frowned. "It wasn't meant to be about you. It was about the future. About the company."

"And what about my future?" she snapped, her voice rising for the first time. "Or did that get replaced the second he walked into your life?" She watched him with glaring eyes. She was done being the good girl. Always trying to get on his good book. She just wanted to burn everything to the ground.

Before Samuel could speak, the door creaked open again.

A soft knock. Then followed by a cautious step. Mia twisted her head up as Ethan stepped in like he wasn't sure he should be here. At least he was smart enough to know he doesn't belong here.

His presence had immediately changed the air in the room. Not because he did anything..... but because he existed.

She turned toward him fully, her spine straightening, her expression hardening like armor snapping into place.

He looked uncomfortable, hands tucked into his pockets, like he expected her to pull out a gun, and point it to his head. And ohh, she really was thirsty for his blood.

"Sorry," he said, eyes flicking from her to Samuel. "I wasn't sure if you wanted me to come in."

Mia rolled her eyes. Isn't it obvious? No one wanted him here.

Samuel's tone shifted instantly.... a little softer and welcoming. "Of course, come in, Ethan."

That tone. Mia had never heard that tone directed at her. Not even when she had lost her mom and crying in the garden. He had told her to go inside and read the business books he bought for her. That a weak person can't rule Meyer empire.

As a child, she had swallowed her tears and went to study with a broken heart.

And now here it was, handed over to a man she didn't even know.

Samuel smiled faintly. "I thought now would be a good time for you two to properly meet."

Properly meet? Like they were business associates. Like this wasn't the most earth-shattering betrayal of her life.

Mia's gaze locked onto Ethan's face.

The resemblance was undeniable. The same eyes. The same jawline. The same nose. There was no denying it, he was Samuel's son.

Her father's features, twisted into someone else. He was his carbon copy.

Ethan took a hesitant step forward. "Mia," he said gently. "It's good to finally meet you." She said nothing.

His voice was calm, careful. Like someone walking on ice. He looked sincere.... but that didn't matter. Sincerity didn't erase betrayal.

She studied him for a long moment. The way he stood. The way he fidgeted slightly, unsure of his place. He didn't seem smug. Or arrogant.

But that didn't make her feel any less angry.

Her fingers dug slightly into the armrest of the chair behind her. "How long have you known about me?" she asked, her voice low.

Ethan blinked, surprised by the question. "A while," he admitted. "I just... I wasn't sure how to reach out."

"So you waited until the cameras were rolling?"

"Mia," Samuel interrupted, his voice laced with warning.

She turned on him. "Don't. Father" The word father tasted bitter sweet on her mouth.

There was a silence that felt louder than any shouting.

Ethan cleared his throat. "Look... I didn't ask for this. I didn't come here to replace anyone. I just....."

"You didn't have to ask," Mia cut in sharply. "You showed up. That was enough."

Ethan fell quiet.

Samuel exhaled, stepping between them slightly, as if he could smooth over the jagged edges with another carefully worded explanation. "This isn't about choosing one of you over the other," he said.

She laughed bitterly. "No? Then tell me, who's the one being groomed to lead the company?"

Her father's silence said everything.

Mia took a step back, her jaw tight, her heart thudding painfully behind her ribs. She had walked into this room hoping..... foolishly.... that maybe there would be some logic behind this madness. Some sliver of reassurance that she still had a place.

But now, standing in front of the man who raised her....and the brother she never knew existed.... Mia understood something with a clarity she had never felt before.

Her father hadn't just blindsided her. He had dethroned her. Right here, right now.

And she was done pretending she was okay with it.

She turned toward Ethan slowly, eyes narrowed, voice calm but cutting.

"You may be my father's son," she said, "but you're not my brother." Ethan flinched, but she didn't care.

Samuel cleared his throat, cutting through the stifling silence. "I need you to know that Ethan has been in my life for some time now," he said, his voice as steady and calm as though he were reporting quarterly earnings to the board. "I just thought it was the right moment to bring him into everything. Both personally and for the business."

Mia exhaled slowly, her body sinking into the chair. This was all becoming too much for her. They all knew the 'sometime' he was referring to meant several years. She could bet her both kidneys that, it's been up to ten years..... If not more.

Her hands tightening around the armrest of the chair she had just sunk into. "I still don't get your meaning of 'the right moment' Dad. Correct me if I'm wrong. The 'right moment' is when you decided on your only daughter's birthday, that she wasn't good enough to take over what she's worked her whole life for?" Her words were soft, but the edge of them sliced through the air. Even Samuel flinched.