Lovers or rivals?

《Later that day》

Catherine recieved a message from her secretary, informing her about the meeting that had been scheduled in the tenth floor. Catherine immediately prepared for the meeting as she knew it was vital for the project she had been preparing for.

She couldn't afford any negligence as her dreams were slowly coming true. She knew if she failed, her father would be disappointed and he might even replace her and she didn't want that.

She prepared the materials and her secretary printed out enough copies for the people to be in the conference room. After that, she and her secretary set off to the conference room.

When they got there, there was no one in the room so she began setting up the venue with her secretary. She meticulously checked every detail, from the arrangement of chairs to the nameplates on the conference table, ensuring everything was in perfect order.

After that, she left for the restroom. She splashed water on her face to make herself more alert. She looked at her reflection in the mirror, adjusted her expression, and prepared to face the upcoming meeting with her best demeanor, revealing no signs of weakness. This was the future for her company and she couldn't afford any mistakes.

After that, she went back to the conference room. She distributed all the copies of the material to each table. Slowly, the people involved started trooping in. She saw her father walk in with his secretary followed by the suppliers and pharmaceutical representatives.

She looked around and noticed that Larry, the man that almost assaulted her that night wasn't in the room and that made her relieved. She didn't know what she would do if she saw him here. Probably attack him? That was sure.

She turned her attention to the material and started glancing through it, trying to prepare herself for the upcoming speech when she felt her secretary nudge her a little.

She stared at her in a questioning manner and was about to ask what was going on when;

"Isn't they Nicholas Armani?" Her secretary asked as she stared at a particular spot intently.

"Nicholas?" Catherine wondered in confusion before turning to see if it was true.

Catherine's mouth dropped agape as she saw him walking into the conference hall with Liam following closely behind him.

"What's he doing here?" Catherine asked but there was no answer to that question.

After the attempted assault, Nicholas had made sure to acquire the company but he didn't tell Catherine about it. Catherine was really surprised and that made her almost loose focus of what she had come in here to do.

She was quick to compose herself. She took a copy of the material and handed it over to him. She quickly glanced at him, but he didn't look at her, his indifferent face frowning slightly as he reviewed the documents, acting as if he didn't recognize her.

The meeting started with the attendees discussing the latest developments in the medical equipment and the upcoming clinical trials. As the meeting continued, Catherine decided to propose her suggestions.

"I was hoping to recommend some patients for clinical trials so as to expedite the project's progress as we are running out of time." She said.

Everyone in the room nodded in compliance as they all accepted her proposal. Seeing as she was getting positive answers, Catherine smiled happily but that smile quickly waned when someone she didn't expect rejected her proposal.

"I don't agree with this." She heard a sharp voice say and she stared at him in surprise. What was he doing??

"What's wrong with the suggestion?" She couldn't help nit ask.

"Using humans for clinical trials. Don't you think it's too soon?" Nicholas asked back.

"No.. no I don't. We've been working on this for a while n..."

"The time isn't the issue but the product is. Do you really think it would be a good idea to give out unfinished products to people? Do you know how much that would cost us if this went wrong?" Nicholas asked, interrupting her words.

He was directly questioning her professional capabilities. Catherine was puzzled by Nicholas' confrontational stance and harsh words. Feeling indignant, she retorted without hesitation.

"The products have been tested by the pharmaceutical scientists so I can assure you that this wouldn't cause any problem for you nor Dyson corp." Catherine said with confidence.

"Really? So what would you do if there are problems?" Nicholas asked, not willing to back down too.

The conversation between the two grew increasingly tense, making the atmosphere in the conference room awkward. Everyone knew the history between Nicholas and Catherine but they didn't expect them to bring it to their workplace.

Other attendees exchanged glances, seemingly searching for a way to ease the tension. Despite feeling pressured, Evelyn did not back down, firmly believing her suggestions were in the project's best interest.

Hector sat crossed legged on his seat. He watched in amusement as the two exchanged their opinions in a professional way. It's been a long time he had watched a very intense drama like this and it was coming from his own daughter.

He was more proud of Catherine as she didn't back down when Nicholas openly questioned her capabilities. Nicholas has been known to be a very hard man when it comes to do with business issues.

Even though Nicholas was a rival to his company, Hector knew that having him as a business patner would really help so he didn't really mind when Nicholas took over the pharmaceutical company.

Seeing that their argument wasn't going to end anytime soon, Hector decided to intervene.

"I'm glad to see everyone bravely expressing their opinions at work but it shouldn't turn into a fight. I've decided that the project will proceed, but the clinical issue will be discussed later." Hector said, leaving no room for any argument.

A deep frown appeared on Catherine's face when she heard that. Nicholas had just ruined her chance at success and all for what?? The meeting concluded in a tense and serious atmosphere.

Before leaving, Hector asked Catherine to go with him to his office. Catherine followed her father silently, guessing she might need to explain her actions in the conference room.