His hand shook, the gold signet ring on his finger catching the harsh fluorescent light of the boardroom.

“Now, Father,” Nathan repeated, his voice dropping to a low whisper.

Richard slid his thumb across the glass, silencing the ringer, and set the phone face down on the polished mahogany table.

The silence returned, heavier than before.

I held Lily tighter against my chest, her warm breath dampening the collar of my blouse.

Nathan looked down at the documents laid out between us.

They were the divorce papers Richard’s attorneys had prepared, neatly stacked and waiting for a signature.

Nathan reached out, his long fingers spreading across the top page.

He did not pick up the pen.

Instead, he gripped the stack and tore the pages down the middle.

The sound of ripping paper was loud, like a sudden snap of dry wood.

He tore them again, crossing the clean white sheets into quarters, and dropped the scraps onto the table.

“I am not signing these,” Nathan said, looking directly at his father.

“Nathan, be reasonable,” Richard said, his voice strained. “The press will destroy us if this gets out.”