Chapter 5 - The Wake of the Storm
Three days passed. Sloan was still under, but the nurses reported minor improvements—a flicker of an eyelid, a slight change in heart rate when the girls spoke to her.
Griffin barely slept. He spent his time between the ICU, the waiting room, and the house. He was learning how to be a father in real-time, helping Hazel with her math homework, comforting Iris when she had nightmares, making pancakes that were slightly burnt but eaten with enthusiasm.
He was discovering a different kind of ambition—the ambition to be present.
On the fourth day, he was in the hospital cafeteria, grabbing a quick lunch, when he saw a familiar face across the room.
It was her brother.
Mark.
Mark Callaway, the man who had been Sloan's protector, the man who had helped her disappear.
Griffin didn't hesitate. He stood up, his chair clattering to the floor, and marched over.
Mark saw him coming and stopped, his face tightening.
"Griffin," Mark said.
"You knew," Griffin said, his voice cold.
"I knew," Mark replied, his voice just as steady.
"Why? Why the hell didn't you tell me? Do you have any idea what she went through? What we both went through?"
Mark sighed, looking around at the crowded cafeteria. "Let’s go outside."
They stepped out into the crisp, biting air of the hospital courtyard. Mark turned to face him.
"She was terrified, Griffin. You were becoming a titan. You were everywhere. If she had stayed, she would have been swallowed up. She wanted to build her own life, on her own terms. She didn't want to be a trophy wife, or a footnote in your biography. She wanted to be Sloan. And she knew that if you had known about the twins, you would have offered her everything—the houses, the cars, the nannies—and she would have lost herself in it."
"I would have given her everything," Griffin said.
"Exactly," Mark said. "And she wanted to see if she could earn it."
Griffin looked at him, the anger slowly draining away, replaced by a profound sense of shame. "I should have been better."
"We all should have been," Mark said, his voice softening. "But she’s here now, and she needs you. She doesn't need a CEO. She needs a partner."
"I can do that," Griffin said. "I can learn how to do that."
Mark clapped a hand on his shoulder. "She loves you, Griffin. She’s loved you since the day you two met in the design studio. Don't waste this second chance."
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Griffin watched him walk away, his mind reeling. He had spent his whole life trying to win, trying to be the best, trying to reach the top. But he realized now that he had been playing the wrong game.
The game wasn't about power. It was about connection.
