One of the older board members, a man with thick silver hair and wire-rimmed glasses, looked at me.

“Who is this young lady?” he asked, looking at his papers.

“This is Ethan’s new wife,” Jason said, his tone dismissive. “The one his father bartered for to settle his gambling debts. She is clearly overwrought by my cousin’s condition.”

A murmur ran through the room.

My face burned with shame, but I forced myself to walk toward the table.

“My marriage is not the issue here,” I said, my voice steady. “The issue is what is being done to the rightful heir of this company.”

Jason stood up, placing his hands flat on the mahogany table.

“Remove her,” he said to the guards who had entered behind me.

“Wait,” the silver-haired man said, raising a hand. “I am Arthur Pendelton. I have been the legal counsel for the Thornton estate for thirty years. What do you mean, young lady?”

The guards hesitated, looking between Jason and Pendelton.

I took a deep breath, my fingers clutching the strap of my small handbag.