CHAPTER 26

Athena's POV

I arrived at work early, eager to get the meeting I had asked Pamela, my P.A., to move up so I could get it out of the way. The plan was simple: handle business, then move on with my day. But as I walked into my office, I stopped in my tracks.

My father was sitting there, waiting for me.

“Daddy, good morning,” I said, forcing a smile, pretending everything was fine, as if we hadn’t had a huge argument last night.

“So, you're talking to me now?” he asked, his voice calm but sharp as he handed me a cup of coffee.

“If you're here to tell me to break up with Cassian, it's not happening,” I said firmly, my fingers instinctively brushing the engagement ring on my finger. The ring that Cassian had given me.

His eyes followed the motion, a frown creeping across his face before he forced a smile. "Actually, I'm here to say that if you want to be with the Covington boy, I won't stop you."

“What?” I asked, confused by the sudden shift.

“Yeah.” He smiled again, but it didn’t reach hi