The moment the nurse carried my newborn into recovery, my mother recoiled. “We will never acknowledge a fatherless child,” she said. My father folded his arms. “And we will never hold that baby.”

Now my mother moved closer, her perfume cutting through the sterile air. “You will sign over your shares in the family company. Grant has a buyer waiting. After this scandal, you are no longer fit to represent us.”

She set a folder beside my bed.

That was the true purpose of their visit.

My father continued, “Sign today, and we may provide a modest allowance. Refuse, and you will raise that child alone.”

I nearly smiled.

Before I went into labor, my lawyer had warned me they might attempt exactly this. My twelve-percent ownership was the final obstacle preventing Grant from gaining complete control of Mercer Development.