At the time, I'd worried Duke might take it the wrong way. I hadn't wanted to include such a defensive provision; after all, I believed married couples should trust each other.
Uncle Victor had only said one thing:
"If he truly loves you, one clause won't make him angry—unless his intentions were never pure to begin with."
When Duke first saw that provision, he had been displeased. I'd coaxed and soothed him, explaining it away with a single line: "You're the legal representative, and I'm not asking for shares." Only then did he let it go.
Now, Duke's face drained of color. His fingers gripped the documents so hard his knuckles went white.
After a long silence, he forced out through a stiff jaw:
"Gertrude, all you did was provide the capital. I'm the one who built EmpireStar these past years. I can pay you back three times—five times—what you invested. But I'm the legal representative of this company."
I let out a soft laugh, dripping with contempt.
"And what does that make you? Nothing but hired help."
"If someone gives you a calf, and three years later you've raised it into a full-grown bull—do you really think you can hand back a calf and call it even? What world do you live in?"