34.

Aiden's POV

The entire office seemed heavy with the tension and distaste we had for each other. Ricardo kept staring at me with the certainty in his eyes, the assurance that he would win this battle.

"I won't let you have Lily," I retorted, my voice edged with defiance. "She's off-limits to scum like you."

Silence loomed in the room, thick and charged with an unspoken challenge, our mutual dislike simmering beneath the surface, waiting to erupt.

Ricardo's next words hit me like a ton of bricks—a surprise that sent flurries of anger to my heart. "You know, your father tried to be as stubborn as you are now," he said, that calm expression never leaving his face. "Look where it got him. Like I said, you should really learn from me, as far as I am concerned."

I growled; the mention of my late father was a sore spot. "Don't you dare drag my father into this," I snapped, barely holding back the anger simmering within me.

Memories flooded my mind—of my father, slaving under the thumb of the