She kept going, maligning me, "If you ask me, she's just name-dropping to scare you! Trying to bait you into marrying her. You can't fall for that!"
Oliver looked rattled for a moment, clearly thrown off. Then he let out a long, theatrical sigh and adopted that fake helpless tone I was all too familiar with.
"Kiara, whether Therese is a gold-digger or not, once she signs, she can't back out. Not after we're married. And don't forget, if I don't marry her, my dad won't hand over the Jefferson shares."
And there it was.
This entire engagement? It had nothing to do with me.
I was just a shortcut and a stepping stone to the power Oliver was aiming for. Marrying me was part of his corporate climb, nothing more.
And Kiara? The way she was suddenly clawing to stop it told me everything I needed to know.
She had something to hide.
Her appearance, the brands she wore, and the smug confidence radiating from her suggested she wasn't living on an assistant's salary. I was ready to bet my broken vase that she had access to another card—Oliver's second supplementary card.
It had to be Kiara who'd racked up those charges.