Damon's POV
"You're saying... I'm not the father?" I repeated, slowly, dangerously.
Godwin Thompson stood across from me, jaw tight, fake confidence dripping from his every word like cheap cologne. Celeste Langford lounged beside him like a queen who believed she'd already won.
"We're only doing what's right," Celeste purred, crossing her legs. "The board deserves clarity. Marcus deserves the truth."
I didn't flinch. Not even when my father, Marcus Westin, rose from his leather chair with a thunderous glare directed at me.
"I want a paternity test. Now," Marcus barked, his voice laced with a fury I hadn't heard since childhood. "We settle this once and for all."
Silence fell like a guillotine. Celeste paled. Godwin stiffened. Aria gripped my hand tightly, her pulse racing beneath her skin.
I met Marcus's glare head-on.
"Good," I said coldly. "Let the truth burn."
Aria, standing behind me, inhaled sharply. I felt her fingers graze my elbow, hesitant, trembling.
