I reached for my phone.
Daniel moved toward me.
“Put that down.”
“Don’t come any closer.”
He stopped.
For several seconds, we stared at each other across the hallway.
Then he sighed.
“Do you have any idea how much trouble you’ve caused?”
I could barely speak.
“You drugged me.”
“I tried to keep you calm.”
“You forged my signature.”
“You weren’t supposed to see those documents.”
“You planned to take my money.”
His eyes hardened.
“Your money? Do you know what I have invested in this arrangement? Do you know what I owe?”
“No.”
“Exactly. You have no idea what I’ve been dealing with.”
He began pacing.
“My company is facing creditors. A partner betrayed me. Everything I built is collapsing. I needed time.”
“So you married me?”
“At first, yes.”
The admission struck harder than any insult.
I grabbed the banister.
“At first?”
Daniel stopped pacing.
For a moment, something like shame crossed his face.
