Ethan: Clara, take Leo upstairs to his room and have the house doctor examine his elbow.
Clara: Right away, Mr. Vance. Come on, Leo, let's get you a warm cup of cocoa.
Leo held Clara's hand tightly as they walked up the grand staircase, leaving Ethan alone with his legal team.
Ethan: Call our chief legal counsel. I want every contract associated with Sterling Holdings canceled by noon.
Lawyer: Mr. Vance, breaking the prenuptial agreement and business merger simultaneously will cost us millions in legal fees.
Ethan: I don't care if it costs us fifty million dollars. I will not allow a violent woman anywhere near my family.
Lawyer: Her father, Richard Sterling, is already calling your private cell phone.
Ethan pulled his phone from his tuxedo pocket and clicked the speaker button, setting it on the marble table.
Richard: Ethan! What is the meaning of this?! My daughter was just thrown out of your estate like a common trespasser!
Ethan: Your daughter assaulted my six-year-old son in my ballroom, Richard.
Richard: She told me it was an accident! She said the boy tripped over the piano bench!
Ethan: I have 4K video footage of her grabbing the bench and throwing him to the ground.
Silence filled the line on the other end as Richard Sterling struggled to find words.
Richard: Ethan... please. She was under immense pressure regarding the gala publicity.
Ethan: That is no excuse. The engagement is officially canceled, and I am pulling all Vance capital out of your real estate trust.
Richard: If you pull your capital, my company will go into foreclosure by the end of the week!
Ethan: Then you better start selling your personal assets, because my decision is final.
Richard: You are destroying thirty years of business partnership over a minor incident!
Ethan: Hitting my child is not a minor incident. Goodbye, Richard.
Ethan hung up the phone and turned to his head of security.
Ethan: Send the camera footage directly to the district attorney's office. I want criminal assault charges filed against Victoria Sterling.
Head of Security: It will be done within the hour, sir.
Meanwhile, upstairs in the nursery, Clara gently applied a soft bandage to Leo's small elbow.
Leo: Clara... why was Miss Victoria so angry at me?
Clara: She wasn't angry at you, Leo. She just had a mean heart, and mean people don't know how to appreciate beautiful music.
Leo: I don't want Daddy to marry her.
Clara: He isn't going to marry her, sweetheart. Your daddy loves you more than anything in the world.
The nursery door opened softly, and Ethan stepped inside, his sharp tuxedo jacket removed and his sleeves rolled up.
Ethan: How is my little pianist doing?
Leo: The doctor gave me a gold star sticker, Daddy!
Ethan: That's my brave boy. Can I talk to Clara for a minute down the hall?
Leo: Okay, but don't take too long. Clara promised to read me a story.
Clara stood up, smoothing down her light blue nanny uniform as she followed Ethan out into the carpeted hallway.
Clara: Is everything okay downstairs, Mr. Vance?
Ethan: Victoria's father tried to cover for her, but I am pressing criminal charges.
Clara: She was very aggressive, sir. I was terrified she was going to hurt him worse before you walked in.
Ethan: I should have noticed her true nature sooner, Clara. I was so focused on business contracts that I nearly put my son in danger.
Clara: You came in time, Mr. Vance. That is all that matters to Leo.
Ethan looked down at the young woman, noticing for the first time how calm, gentle, and fiercely protective she was.
Ethan: You stood up to a woman who had millions of dollars and endless influence, just to shield my son.
Clara: I don't care how much money someone has. Nobody hurts Leo while I am on duty.
Ethan: Starting today, your salary is tripled, Clara. And you are no longer just a nanny in this house.