Ryan's brow furrowed as he turned to Keeley. "Why did you have to drive him home?"

She shrugged, swallowing a bite of cake before answering. "No one else was going to."

"Why couldn't he?" he persisted, nodding toward Aiden.

"I was closer. We'd just finished walking down the aisle when it happened," she explained.

Aaron, annoyed by Ryan's interrogation—he wasn't even dating Keeley!—wondered what right he had to question her.

Valentina, sensing the awkwardness, quickly changed the subject. "Wow, this cake is delicious!"

"I know, right? Best cake ever! I wanted some for my birthday, but finals made me forget," Keeley lamented.

"There's always next year!" Valentina said brightly, relieved her friend was playing along.

An awkward standoff lingered between Ryan and Aiden, who eyed each other distrustfully. Aaron desperately tried to avoid escalating the tension; he didn't want trouble at Cameron's wedding.

"Are you even going to get it next year, considering you're moving?" Ryan asked.

Keeley's world seemed to stop. Moving? She'd never mentioned moving! How did Ryan know, when Aaron didn't? Unfazed by Aaron's internal turmoil, she shrugged nonchalantly. "If I end up in New Jersey, I'll be even closer."

Valentina sighed dramatically. "Ah, postgraduate problems. I might have to leave New York too, depending on hospital residency placements."

The conversation continued, but Aaron felt increasingly isolated, despite being physically present. Keeley loved New York, but her career was her priority. If she left, he might never see her again.

What could he do? He couldn't influence universities to hire her, and convincing her to stay would likely be futile and unfair; she'd already sacrificed her dreams once. He couldn't leave New York either; his revenge on his father wasn't complete. He needed to oust his father from the company and bring the Knightons down. Afterward, he could find someone trustworthy to take over, but would Keeley even want him to follow her? Probably not. For now, he could focus on improving their relationship. If they were friends, he could at least stay in touch.

He breathed again. This wasn't the end of the world. Keeley wasn't certain about moving; he still had time. Over the next six months, he needed to keep her in his life and rebuild their friendship. That was all he could do.

With Cameron honeymooning in Italy, Aaron handled the next board meeting short one player. He barely secured a majority vote on his latest proposal; he needed more board members on his side.

His father vehemently opposed appointing Bruce as CFO, leaving Bruce neutral and unpredictable, along with Carol, Emilio, and Alexander.

Aaron needed more shares to create another dummy shareholder. Giving away some of his 20% would alert Alistair, so that wasn't an option.

He might have to wait eight months, when stock prices would be at a twenty-year high. He could then try convincing someone like Alexander, who held substantial shares, to sell some. Even 2% would help.

After the meeting, several people inquired about Cameron's absence—he'd never missed a meeting before. Aaron couldn't explain his knowledge of the honeymoon without revealing their close relationship.

It was remarkable how well he'd kept his business relationships with Cameron and Aiden secret. Everyone knew Cameron and Aiden were close, but no one connected them to Aaron.

Cameron acted like any other board member, barely acknowledging Aaron, yet always voting with him. Aiden remained an anonymous floor employee.

Both frequently visited Aaron's secluded office, unseen by others. Aiden's access to security footage, and ability to manipulate it, kept Alistair in the dark.

After the meeting, Aaron returned to his office, unsettled. The Knightons had been unusually quiet.

Aiden had monitored Brann and Lacy's communications, finding nothing illegal. The only anomaly was Lacy making multiple short calls to the same number. This was suspicious; in today's world, people typically texted, and Lacy was no exception. Calls were harder to trace unless a device was installed on the phone.

Feeling uneasy, he messaged his hacker: "Who is the number Lacy keeps calling registered to?"

The instant reply: "Give me three minutes."

Aaron checked Facebook. His feed mostly contained pictures from Cameron's honeymoon in Rome. One picture caught his eye: Jennica, in a tank top and sunglasses, cheek to cheek with Cameron, smiling broadly.

He recalled a near-identical picture from his own honeymoon, with Keeley in a similar outfit. The difference: Cameron looked relaxed, while Aaron appeared less expressive.

He'd been an idiot. Showing emotion to the one you love wasn't wrong. He wished he'd realized it sooner. Things might have been different.

Aiden texted: "The number belongs to someone named Graydon Meyer."

Aaron replied: "Get me everything you can on him immediately."

Aiden: "On it!"

Graydon Meyer. The name faintly rang a bell…