"What sort of nonsense is this?!"
Carlos’s voice yanked me back to the chaos unraveling in the room. I barely had a moment to process before Ignes’s rage erupted.
"You gold digger!" she spat, grabbing her glass of water from the table.
Her arm swung with fury, and before I could react, the glass flew straight at me.
It happened so fast. Emilio moved quicker than I could have imagined, stepping in front of me just in time.
The glass hit him instead. Water splashed everywhere as the cup shattered, pieces scattering across the table and onto my skin.
"Jesus, Ignes!" Rosa yelled in surprise.
"You could’ve injured your own son!" Mr. Alfonso exclaimed, his voice trembling with equal parts anger and shock.
My heart pounded like a drum in my chest. I barely knew what was happening.
Hands trembling, I shielded my face as Emilio leaned over me, his body was a barrier between me and the whole chaos.
Slowly, he straightened himself, brushing the shards of glass from his clothes. I looked up at him, my voice shaky.
"Are... are you alright?"
He didn’t answer me. Instead, he turned on Ignes, his voice filled with cold fury. "What the hell is wrong with you? You could have killed her!"
As he moved, I noticed a small cut on his arm. Blood seeped from it, stark against his skin.
"This gold digger has stolen everything from us!" Ignes roared, her voice trembling with venom.
"This was what you always wanted, wasn’t it?" Carlos sneered, his eyes piercing through me like a knife.
I couldn’t take it anymore. "What is happening?" I demanded, my voice rising as I looked at Mr. Alfonso.
He adjusted his glasses and met my eyes. "That was the last wish of the late Gonzalo Mendoza."
"What wish?!" I asked, still grappling to make sense of the chaos around me.
"You are the sole heir to the Mendoza dynasty," Mr. Alfonso said, his words landing like a thunderclap in the room.
I froze. The air felt thick, suffocating.
“Wait... wait. I’m not part of any of this!" My voice shook as I stared at him.
"Isn’t this what you wanted all along?!" Rosa’s voice rose, sharp and accusing. "I’m sure you lured him into changing his will four months ago!"
Carlos’s voice joined hers. "We’re going to contest this in court!"
"I don’t want any of this!" I said, my voice barely audible over the rising tide of anger and accusations.
I looked at Mr. Alfonso, desperate for clarity.
But his expression didn’t falter. "Ma’am Maria De la Cruz Mendoza," he said, his voice steady, "the last and dying wish of your husband, Gonzalo Mendoza, was to make you the sole heir and the highest shareholder of his dynasty."
The room fell silent. I could barely breathe as I watched him carefully pack the documents back into his leather portfolio.
I sat there, stunned. He wasn’t joking. This wasn’t some cruel mistake. Gonzalo had been serious.
"Wait... Can I see the will?" I asked, with my voice trembling.
"Of course," Mr. Alfonso replied, pulling the document back out and handing it to me.
The moment my fingers closed around it, Carlos pushed back his chair with a scrape, his face dark with frustration as he stormed out of the room.
"You need to do something about this, son!" Ignes’s voice followed him as she rushed to Emilio’s side. "This is yours—it’s all meant to be yours!"
Her words hung in the air as Emilio and I locked eyes. For a brief moment, it felt like the world stopped, but I broke the connection, quickly looking back at the will in my hands.
Everything was there in black and white. Every word was crystal clear. Seventy percent of the Mendoza dynasty now belonged to me. Me.
I couldn’t believe it.
This wasn’t the plan. Emilio and I had talked about escaping this world, leaving it behind us. But this? This changed everything.
Everything just crushed down on me. My hands shook as I dropped the will back onto the table. I couldn’t stay in that room, not for another second.
Without a word, I stood and rushed out. I needed air. I needed to think. Most of all, I needed to breathe.
I rushed into my room, fumbling with the collar of my white dress. My hands wouldn’t stop trembling.
"Why the hell did Gonzalo leave everything to me?" I muttered under my breath, pacing the floor like a trapped animal.
And to think I... I... Oh no.
I couldn’t even bring myself to say it out loud. I still couldn't wrap my head around everything.
Everything belonged to me now. Everything.
Gonzalo had three children—Emilio, his only child with Ignes, and two others from his second wife, Rosa.
Emilio, the firstborn, had always kept his distance from his father’s business, much to Ignes’s dismay.
She wanted it all for herself, using Emilio as her pawn.
Rosa and her children had their stakes too, though it didn’t surprise me that they hadn’t bothered to show up for the burial, let alone the will reading.
It wasn’t exactly a secret that Gonzalo was a terrible father.
His world revolved around his business and his money. He had no space for his children—or his wives.
Except for me. He loved me, in his own twisted way, more than the others. I was his favorite.
But I hated him with every fiber of my being.
"Maria!" My name rang through the air as my door flung open with a loud bang.
I turned, startled, to see Emilio standing there.
"Emilio!" I cried, rushing to him as he stepped inside and gently closed the door behind him.
I threw myself into his arms, relief flooding through me as he held me tightly.
"Are you okay? Your arm—I saw the cut," I said, pulling back just enough to look him over.
"It’s fine," he assured me, his voice steady. He raised his hands to cup my face, forcing me to look up at him. "I’m fine, Maria."
"You shouldn’t be here," I whispered, glancing nervously toward the door. "Everywhere is hot right now."
"I know," he said, his voice low, almost soothing. "No one was expecting this... not from my father."
"I’m sorry, Emilio. I wasn’t expecting any of this either," I said quickly, the words tumbling out of me. "I can give it all back to you. I don’t want it—"
"Shh." He pressed a finger to my lips, silencing me.
"Look at me, Maria," he said softly. "None of it matters. I don’t care if he left everything to you or not. You’re the only thing that matters to me."
He reached out, brushing a stray strand of hair from my face, still keeping his eyes on me.
"Everyone will have to get used to you being the new boss, dear stepmother," he teased, his lips curving into a mischievous smile.
"Stop it," I said, swatting lightly at his chest, but I couldn’t hide my own small smile.
He knew exactly how much I hated being called that.
"What are we going to do, Emilio?" I asked, my voice filled with desperation. "We were supposed to leave after the will reading. Now everything’s a mess."
He didn’t answer. His gaze was just all over me, softening as he leaned down, his face drawing closer to mine.
I held my breath, my heart pounding as his lips hovered just inches from mine.
I closed my eyes, and then his lips met mine. Soft, warm, and perfect.
For a moment, the chaos outside the room melted away, leaving only us.
But the moment didn’t last.
"Maria De la Cruz!" A voice bellowed from outside, shattering the little moment of peace we had.
We broke apart instantly, moving to opposite sides of the room like guilty children.
My heart raced as the door swung open, slamming against the wall. Almost the same time I and Emilio broke apart.
I swallowed hard, my pulse roaring in my ears. Bad timing!
The door creaked open, and there he was—Carlos, my late husband’s brother, standing in the doorway with a smug expression plastered on his face.
"Oh, Emilio, I didn’t know you were here.”
Of course, he knew. Carlos had always been one for theatrics. He was probably prowling around, looking for a fight after that disastrous will reading.
Like the others, he had hoped for a significant piece of the Mendoza dynasty, only to be left disappointed.
His frustration was written all over his face, and honestly, I couldn’t help the quiet laugh that bubbled up inside me. It was satisfying to see him squirm.
"Uh... yes," Emilio stammered, trying to steady himself. "I just came to—"
He glanced at me briefly, his words trailing off. We’d managed to pull apart just in time, but there was no telling if Carlos had caught on.
"I didn’t realize you were here with your stepmother when your whole family needs you most right now," Carlos said.
But there was just something in his tone that pricked me.
"What are you doing here, Carlos?" I interjected, cutting him off before his thoughts could wander anywhere I didn’t want them to.
His lips curled into a sneer as he took a step forward, his eyes narrowing.
“Wow… just look at you," he spat. "From a dirty little pauper to the new heir of the Mendoza dynasty. Something my brother and I worked so hard to build!"
"Uncle Carlos!" Emilio stepped between us, "I won’t let you talk to Maria that way!"
My heart softened at his defense. Emilio had always been my shield, stepping in when the Mendoza family’s claws came out.
Carlos scoffed, turning on Emilio with a withering glare.
"And how is this your problem?" he snapped. "This is between me and your stepmother. Why are you so protective of her? So defensive? More than you are of your own mother, dear Emilio?"