Tristan's POV

Kicking the punch bag, I nearly lost my balance in the process.
I fisted my hand, ready to take another punch.

"Is your conscience not allowing you to sleep?" A voice spoke.

I turned around to see Luke stepping into the room.

On days when there was a lot of work to do, he slept over.

It must have been nearly three a.m. right now.
After tossing and turning I finally decided to go to my gym instead.

"Why aren't you asleep?" I retorted.

"Well, I have a very demanding boss. I thought I'd stop by and throw a few punches to wake me up so I would stop falling asleep." He answered.

I stepped back, giving him some space with the punching back.

"Do you want to talk about what happened today?" he asked.

"You know, I've never met any person who is this lucky," I answered recalling yesterday's events.

We were so close to getting that doctor's appointment. That way I could prove all of her lies so she could stop making a fool of herself instead.

"What would happen if she ended up being pregnant with your child?" He asked.

I chuckled. "There is no way that is possible, that would just be terrible for everyone." I answered.

"Especially for you, right?" He replied.

"Besides, I'm only doing this to teach her a lesson. She needs to learn that it's not okay to lie to people." I paused. "Do you think I should tell her that I just found out that I can't have any children? I could add a whole creative story about horseback riding as a child. It would be great to see her reaction." I laughed.

"You really are just playing with that poor girl. Why don't you just get yourself a sports car or something really expensive like a normal rich person?" He asked.

"I'm not ready to let her go just yet. Besides, what would be the fun in that?" I smirked.

"Well, I know you didn't want any cameras installed in your penthouse, so I managed to get the footage from outside your penthouse and the elevator of that night if you want to take a look at it," Luke suggested.

"You know I don't have time for that. Besides, I don't care." I answered.

"Well, you should try to get some sleep, sir. Remember you have to attend your grandfather's function," He spoke.

****

I spent the day at the office catching up on the developments of our latest project. Everything has been moving smoothly overall. However, I'm still not any closer to convincing Leonardo to sell his land. If that deal doesn't fall through, then everything we have managed to do so far would have been for nothing.

I wonder what Ashley was doing today. I wonder which lie she will invent next. I have to give her some credit. So far, she has managed to surprise me.

Without warning, my door swung open as my grandfather stepped in. He leaned on his cane, dragging one foot behind him as he walked.

"Isn't it enough that I already have to see you this evening?" I asked.

"Well, I came here in person to make sure that you would be attending." He answered. "Besides, since you carry my last name, it means everything you do does concern me, including your business." He continued.

He pulled out a chair before throwing himself on it to sit.

I sat back waiting to hear what he had to say.

"Well, rumour has it that you still haven't managed to convince Leonardo to sell his land," he replied.

I couldn't help but roll my eyes. It meant I was about to hear one of those 'I'm so disappointed, at your age, I could do better' speeches.

"I've already told you how this business works. When you can't buy your way to something or cheat, you resort to blackmail. " He spoke proudly.

"I already told you, Grandpa, I'm not like you. I don't blackmail my way through business." I insisted.

"But you will be," He answered. I hadn't noticed the folder in his hand, he gently slid the folder across the table over to me. "Luckily one of us still has a backbone. I asked my PI to do some research on him and I think you might find some of it useful." He smiled.

"You know that's not me; I'd rather have nothing to do with it," I answered sliding it back to him.

"Think about it. I'll just leave the folder here. You are free to do anything you want with it." He spoke.

He leaned on his cane, helping himself up. Just like that, he was on his way again. "I'll see you tonight." He waved goodbye.

This had to be his shortest visit.

My eyes couldn't help but revert to the folder.

After countless times, my grandfather still thought I would use his techniques. Sure, I might manipulate people sometimes, but I'd never revert to blackmail.

Still, I couldn't get my mind off the folder. It was already there, so there was no harm in looking. After all, I wouldn't be using anything in that folder against him.

I reached across the table and grabbed the folder.

I leaned into my chair, paging through every page of that file.

"Ashley?" I whispered as my eyes widened in shock.

*****

During the day, I had a couple of meetings to attend to, plus the hour I spent taking a nap meant I was probably the last guest to arrive at my grandfather's gathering.

I couldn't help but think of Ashley. Did she know the truth? If so, that would just leave a lot of questions unanswered.

I had to get her out of my head for just one hour. It was time for me to put on my best party face.

As usual, my grandfather went overboard with the decorations. Lights decorated the place with violinists performing in the background. Everything was polished down to the tea. Most guests were all gathered in the living room. It was spacious enough to host everyone.

My cousin Vincent was the first person I spotted. He was at the bar situated in the far corner of the living room. He was surrounded by three other girls. Nothing ever seemed to change about him; he was always his flirtatious self.

As soon as he saw me, it was as if he couldn't escape from those girls even faster.

He broke free from the one girl who had her arm hooked in with his as he walked away with his drink to approach me.

"Hi cous," Vincent greeted. "Thank goodness you're here. I was getting tired of hearing Grandpa talk about himself." He sighed. He took a sip of his drink.

"Weren't you with those three?" I pointed at the girls.

We noticed them waving at us.

"I was getting tired of talking about myself." He admitted.

A waiter stopped by, handing me a drink.

I took a moment to scan the crowd for any familiar faces.

"Is that Calvin?" I asked noticing an old friend. We went to college together, along with Vincent.

He was in a secluded corner, talking to an older lady. "Is that his mother? I don't recognize her." I continued to ask.

Vincent chuckled.

"No, that's his sixty-three-year-old girlfriend. His parents disowned him right after." He spoke.

"Wow, I wish getting a sixty-three-year-old girlfriend was all it took for my parents to disown me. My mother has the strange idea that she can find me a wife." I spoke. I took a sip of my drink.

"Your parents are only starting now? I can't begin to count the number of women I've already been introduced to." He laughed.

With his drink, Vincent pointed to an old business associate of my grandfather. "I can't believe he actually showed up. He wanted to leave his wife for his mistress. He couldn't just leave her, so he paid someone to seduce her. He was afraid that she would get everything in the divorce. Turns out the swindler fell in love with his wife and helped her get all of his money. Now he has nothing." Vincent explained.

'Don't tell me you two are gossiping like women as usual.' Grandpa approached us.

He was accompanied by a man.

"These are my grandsons, Tristan and Vincent." Grandpa pointed at us. "And this is Matthew. He is a friend of mine." Grandpa introduced us.

"Tristan, I've heard about your upcoming project. I must say it sounds very ambitious." He spoke.

"Didn't you say your daughter was planning a new project too?" Grandpa asked.

"Yes," Matthew answered. "In fact, there she is," he pointed out.

I couldn't believe my luck. It was Madison. I thought I would never see her again after dinner with my parents.

Madison smiled as she approached us. I tried to look for all possible directions I could take, but it was too late.

Madison approached us.

"Tristan," She greeted with a smile.

I answered with a nod.

I'm glad she wasn't her touchy self today. I don't think I could stand it.

"I see you two are already acquainted with one another," Grandpa commented. "I have an idea. Why don't the two of you work on a project together? I'm sure with both of you involved, it would turn out great. I will finance the whole thing myself. " He continued.

Matthew nodded to show his approval.

My smile dropped. I could barely stand being around her for an hour. How were we supposed to work on a project that could last for a year or even longer?

I noticed the excitement slowly building up in Maddison's eyes. I was quick to cut her off before she could speak.

"It sounds like a great offer, but I would have to decline this opportunity. I'm currently working on very big projects, and I can't afford to split any more of my time," I answered.

"It's alright son," Grandpa replied downheartedly. "I've always said it's better to admit when you can't do something. Admitting it doesn't make you weak." He added.

He had chosen his words to provoke me but this time it wasn't going to work.

"Since Tristan was a little kid, he always took the easy way out. Unlike his cousin Vincent who always dared to do more challenging things. My favourite grandson." Grandpa continued. He patted Vincent's back.

I smiled as he continued to tell the rest of the story. Making Vincent his 'favourite' just meant he would be off my back for a while longer.

"When he first told me that he wanted to venture into the hotel business, I thought to myself, I should have just brought him Barbie dolls and playhouses as a kid instead of letting him tag along to learn from me, and here I was thinking that he was finally doing something with his life." Grandpa continued.

He knew how to push the right buttons, and it worked.

My hand clenched onto my glass. "You know what? Let's do it," I said. "I'm sure my assistant can find a little time in my schedule for this project."

With those words, I felt instant regret.

"That's my boy, that's the Montenegro spirit," Grandpa cheered.

He patted my back showing his approval.

I can't believe I just walked right into his trap.

"To new beginnings," Grandpa toasted.

We all rose our glasses.

"Please excuse us," Vincent spoke.

Vincent gripped my arm, pulling me away from the crowd.

He finally stopped once Grandpa was out of sight.

"Have you gone mad? Are you really going to work with Mad Maddison? You do realize that you just dug your own grave?" Vincent asked.

I sighed.

"I had no choice. Grandpa was clearly trying to provoke me," I answered.

"Well, let's just hope he doesn't start planning your wedding soon." He warned.

He wouldn't try to take things that far, would he?

I looked back at Maddison who was waving at me. What mess did I get myself into now?

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A/N: Thank you so much for reading. I'm sorry I couldn't update when I said I would, I wasn't feeling well.

Please tell me your thoughts on the story.