Chapter 2

Victoria looked at me and scoffed.

Her expression said she thought I was an idiot who’d let one good card go to his head.

“Of course. Since you brought it up, Mr. Bennett, tell me. What would you like to add?”

Meeting her mocking gaze, I lightly tapped the ace of spades.

“Sterling Group owns five percent of the new waterfront terminal project. Bennett Group owns three percent.”

“I’d like to wager our three percent against your five.”

“What do you say, Miss Sterling?”

The banquet hall erupted.

“Has Adrian lost his mind? That’s the new waterfront terminal! The Sterlings, the Bennetts, and several other major families spent years and a fortune fighting over that project. He’s just gambling it away?”

“No wonder Miss Sterling doesn’t want him. How did the Bennett family produce such an idiot?”

“Unbelievable. His grandfather worked himself to death building that fortune, and Adrian’s throwing it around like a whore tossing off her underwear. If I were the old man, I’d climb out of my urn and strangle the little bastard!”

…

Victoria clapped her hands. The sharp sound silenced the room.

“Good. Very good! Since you’re showing such remarkable ‘courage,’ Mr. Bennett, how could I refuse?”

“I’m in!”

I nodded in satisfaction, then slowly turned toward Julian.

“Julian, Miss Sterling’s called.”

“What about you?”

Julian bit his lip.

He was an impostor. My mother’s family fortune had nothing to do with him, and our father, Richard Hayes, had married into the Bennetts’ money. What could Julian possibly wager? The thirty million in chips was already more money than he’d ever seen.

His lips parted, but all he could do was look to Victoria for help.

Naturally, Victoria couldn’t bear to see her precious darling embarrassed. She immediately spoke up.

“Julian, go ahead. Whatever you want to bet, I’ll—”

“Careful, Miss Sterling!”

I raised my voice and cut her off, my expression cold.

“This is between the two of us. You’d do well to stay out of it.”

Lowering my head, I slowly turned the antique ring on my middle finger. It marked me as the Sterling family’s future son-in-law. Then I continued:

“Don’t worry, Julian.”

“As your older brother, I know you don’t have the resources to match that kind of wager.”

I paused and slid the ring off my finger.

It landed in the pot with a small click.

“How about this? I’ll add my place as Victoria’s future husband.”

“In exchange, if you lose, you publicly admit you’re neither Richard Hayes’s adopted son nor an innocent child mistakenly raised as his legitimate heir. You’re the bastard he fathered with the nanny while my mother was pregnant.”

The room exploded.

Julian went white. He slammed his hands on the table and shot to his feet, shouting at me.

“That’s a lie!”

“Dad adopted me! You’re just jealous that he loves me more, so you’re making things up!”

“Victoria, don’t believe him! He’s slandering me!”

Everyone there knew that nothing disgusted Victoria more than an illegitimate child. Years ago, a half sister who’d appeared out of nowhere had driven her from home, forcing her to spend five years struggling overseas.

She’d nearly died abroad. Only a mysterious mentor’s intervention had allowed her to survive, return to the Sterling family, and reclaim everything.

Victoria’s expression revealed nothing. She simply snapped at Julian:

“Sit down.”

Then she turned to me, a warning in her eyes.

“I’ll get to the bottom of this.”

I met her gaze as though I couldn’t feel the pressure at all.

I even tilted my head and chuckled.

“It’s just a wager, Julian. Calm down.”

“If you’re afraid, you can fold. Why lose your temper and embarrass yourself?”

My casual tone only enraged him further.

He immediately shot back:

“Afraid? Of course I’ll take that bet!”

“I call.”