TWISTED PROMISES (Twisted Path Book 2

Chapter 1

Shane

(10 Months Earlier)

The silence in the room is thick enough to choke on.

I sit rigid in the chair beside my father, my hands clenched beneath the table where no one can see. My jaw aches from the sheer effort it takes to keep it set. My lungs burn from holding my breath, because the moment I exhale, I'm afraid I'll fall apart. And if I fall apart now, they win. I'll lose my chance to find a way to fix this.

So instead, I focus on mirroring my father's calm. His posture. His icy expression.

But inside?

I'm a fucking storm.
Every part of me is coiled tight, straining to keep the dread from clawing through my chest. My stomach turns with nausea, and my heart pounds with panic. I keep seeing Becca's eyes, glassy with tears, her voice trembling as she begged me to come back to her. "Promise me. Promise you'll come back to me."

And I did. I swore I would. I meant it with the kind of certainty that lives in your bones.

But this? The ring? This insane ultimatum?

I'm terrified of what this will mean for us. For our future. For the promises I made.

I draw in a slow breath to steady myself before I speak. "Help me understand, Dad. Why now? Why Amanda? What does Charles Kline have on us that justifies this?"

Because it doesn't make any sense. The Montgomerys... we're old money. Our name is renowned, well-respected. Our wealth, our reputation, our business holdings... what we have far exceeds anything the Klines have to offer. There has to be a reason for this madness.

At the head of the table, my father doesn't even blink. My mother rolls her eyes, lifting her champagne flute and sipping it like my very existence is driving her to drink.

My father sets his glass down with deliberate precision, then leans back in his chair, the picture of poise and power. "That's not your concern," he replies, his voice clipped. "When you've taken over, when you're finally mature enough to sit in my seat as the head of this family, only then will you understand the sacrifices that were made to get you here. Only then will you appreciate the sacrifices that have been asked of you."

Not my concern?

Not my fucking concern?

I grit my teeth so hard it's a wonder they don't break. His words land like a backhand across my face. The implication that my job isn't to question what's being asked of me, but only to fall in line, is infuriating. It might have worked when I was a kid, but now? I'm an adult. A man. And this? What he's proposing... it's not some business merger. It's not some negotiation or power play. This is my life.

"So let me get this straight," I say, the restraint in my voice starting to fray. "You expect me to sign away my future—my life—on blind faith. Just because you say it's best for the family. But you won't even tell me why?"

His face doesn't change. Not even a flicker of emotion. "Correct."

Across the table, my mother sighs again, like I'm being difficult. Like I've inconvenienced them with the outrageous notion that I should get a say in my own goddamn future.

"It's about legacy, Shane. Specifically, your legacy as a Montgomery," she says, setting her glass down and folding her hands like she's delivering a lesson I should've learned years ago. "This arrangement is positioning you for a life most people could only dream of. Power. Influence. Access. And a partner who knows how to wield it. You should be grateful."