My Fiancé Broke My Father’s Legacy, Then Begged for Mercy

My father, Conrad Watson, made great contributions to the National Aerospace Agency, enough to earn himself a presidential giftware award for his service.

After he passed away, I, an aerospace engineer myself, kept the news private and quietly brought his belongings back with me to Summit City, planning to fulfill his final wish without drawing attention.

And while I was already making the trip, I figured I might as well reach out to Grayson Martinez, my childhood fiancé, and finally talk over the whole wedding situation.

But as soon as I got off the plane, I hardly had time to breathe before his secretary barreled into me and knocked me down.

I scrambled to my feet and looked down at the black military-grade cargo case I had been carrying, custom-built to protect the porcelain the state had awarded my father.

When I saw the gift shattered inside, cracked into pieces despite all that protection, I gasped.

I sucked in a breath, trying to hold it together, but before I could even get a word out, that woman turned on me with zero remorse.

"Are you blind?" the secretary snapped. "You knocked off my earring!"

I stared at her, completely taken aback.

Was she actually being serious?

"Miss," I said, keeping my voice as calm as I could, "let's just be clear. You ran into me, and you broke something that belonged to my father. So, how exactly are you spinning this around to make it my fault?"

She actually laughed like I'd just cracked a joke.

"So what if it belonged to a dead man? It's not worth anything. If it broke, it broke."

Then she gave me this smug little squint and added, "These earrings? They're a global, limited edition. Worth over a million. You really think you can afford to piss off the future Mrs. Martinez?"

I just stood there for a second, stunned.

Then, I quietly took out my phone and called the number Grayson's father.

"Uncle Robert," I said when he answered, "I didn't know the Martinez family had two daughters-in-law."

——

Truth be told, I'd never taken the whole childhood engagement seriously, especially not now that my father had just died. Marriage was the last thing on my mind.

But my mother had a different view.

She kept reminding me how close Uncle Robert and my dad had been, how Grayson was flourishing, and how it would mean a lot to the family if we just set a date already.

Still, it had been over ten years since I'd seen Grayson.

Honestly, this trip back wasn't really about finalizing a wedding—it was about closure.

So I really wasn't ready for how Uncle Robert responded when he picked up the call.

"Who the hell are you? What do our daughters-in-law have to do with you?"

And then—click. Uncle Robert put the phone down before I could even explain.

That's when I realized I had changed my number before flying back home and hadn't told anyone yet. From the corner of my eye, I noticed Grayson's secretary smirking again as if she were relishing the whole mess.

"Thought you had some kind of backup, huh? Coming in all tough," she sneered. "Turns out you've got nothing. Pathetic! Just pay up."

She flicked her hair as if in a shampoo advert, her eyes shining. "These earrings? Tiffany. Global limited edition. Over $2 million. You think selling some bumpkin like you would even cover it?"

Then, the secretary pointed directly down to the floor in front of her, her lips curling.

"Tell you what. Kneel and apologize. If I'm in a good mood, maybe I'll give you a discount."

A crowd was starting to form around us, murmurs passing through them like static.

"Over $2 million? Who the hell is this woman?"

"Right? She broke someone else's stuff, and now she's asking them to pay? Where's the justice in that?"

"Shh, keep it down. Didn't she say she's marrying into the Martinez family? That can only mean one thing, you know."

Hearing the name out loud only boosted her ego.

"In Summit City," the secretary said, puffing herself up, "the Martinez family is the law. Even the cops show us respect!"

She turned back to me with a grin like she’d already won. “So be smart and kneel. Once Mr. Martinez arrives, you'll deeply regret what you said."

She looked me up and down, her eyes lingering on my plain T-shirt and faded jeans, clearly showing her disdain for my unimpressive appearance.

I looked back at the shattered porcelain.

My throat tightened.

It was my dad’s keepsake...

Just thinking about that flooded me with overwhelming grief, anger, and loss.

Right then, I looked back up and met her gaze, steady.

“You’re not just blind,” I said. “You’re also stupid. This whole place is covered with security cameras. They'll show plain as day that you ran into me. I haven’t even raised hell about it, and you’re here demanding an apology?”

I glared at her and sneered, “You expect me to apologize? Dream on.”

Out of nowhere, Grayson's secretary lunged forward and slapped me across the face.

“You bitch! How dare you insult me?”

She was shaking with rage now. “These earrings were a birthday gift from Mr. Martinez yesterday! I still have the receipt. They cost $2.3 million!”