Chapter 26

Stefan’s POV

The bourbon burned down my throat, a welcome fire against the cold emptiness spreading through my chest. I signaled the bartender for another. My fourth? Fifth? I’d lost count hours ago.

“You sure about that, buddy?” he asked, eyeing the empty glasses.

“Just pour the damn drink,” I growled.

The alcohol couldn’t drown the words that had haunted me all day: Martin Greene reading Camille’s will, her final message cutting through me like a blade.

“To my former husband, Stefan Rodriguez, I return the engagement ring that belonged to his grandmother, with the hope that next time he gives it, it will be with honesty and true devotion.”

The ring sat heavy in my pocket, retrieved from the safety deposit box this morning. Grandmother Rosa’s ring. Three generations of Rodriguez women had worn it before I’d placed it on Camille’s finger, promising forever with words that turned to ash in my mouth.

Thirty million dollars and th