Chapter 2

Whitney lit up at the offer.

She bumped my shoulder on the way out, chin in the air. "Get back to work. Stop embarrassing yourself."

She left. So did I.

On my way out of the lobby, I pulled up Shane Wilson's pending VP appointment letter on my phone and shredded it.

I had barely cleared the building when Shane himself called.

"Director Reed, you came to Crestwood today. Why didn't you tell me? I would have come down."

I watched Whitney's silhouette disappear at the end of the lobby. One corner of my mouth lifted.

"No need. The team here was very welcoming."

"Director, I am so sorry. If I had known you were coming, I would have postponed the client meeting.

"And tomorrow night, you'll be hosting the gala. Take care of yourself. If you need anything, just have the staff handle it."

He sounded almost overly deferential.

If he knew his fiancee had been calling me a thief, what would he sound like then?

I had no time for this. Tomorrow night was my company's fiftieth anniversary gala. It would be my first appearance as chairman. My parents would be flying in, and many of the country's top business figures would be there.

I had work to do.

I spent that night at the hotel going through the run-of-show with the planners until after three in the morning. By the time I finished, I was too tired to drive, so I booked a room.

The next morning, I went down for breakfast and a final walkthrough. As I stepped out of the elevator, I ran straight into Whitney.

She was wearing a royal-blue velvet gown, with a matching sapphire necklace around her neck. Both looked expensive.

Lisa followed behind her, her face full of envy.

"HQ really values the CEO. They didn't even hesitate to reimburse a dress like that."

Whitney lifted her chin. "Of course. He's about to become a corporate VP. This kind of expense is nothing."

As soon as she saw me, her expression darkened.

"Skylar? Your approval hasn't even come through yet. What are you doing here?"

Her eyes swept over the hotel robe I was wearing, and her face twisted.

"Oh, I get it. You couldn't get approval, so you found a man instead, didn't you?"

Whitney never bothered to keep her voice down. The lobby was quiet, and everyone could hear her.

I cut her off sharply. "Do you even know what day it is? Say one more word, and I'll have you thrown out."

She froze for a second, then pointed at herself and laughed.

"Throw me out? What a joke! I'm the CEO's fiancee. Who do you think you are?"

"You came here today because all the big names are here, right? Looking to latch onto someone again?"

Before I could respond, she suddenly rushed forward and grabbed a fistful of my hair, screaming, "How does this company still have parasites like you?!"

Lisa, standing behind her, seemed to realize something and suddenly pointed at me.

"Wait. After the fitting last night, the CEO came back to the hotel, right? Tell me, did you try something with him again?!"

As she spoke, she reached for me. In the struggle, my keycard fell to the floor.

Whitney snatched it up immediately. Her eyes narrowed.

"So you did get a room here. Lisa, let's go upstairs."

Lisa hesitated. "But what if it's really Shane in there...?"

Whitney drove her knee into my side.

"He's been in this industry for years. He's been with plenty of women, and still came back to me.

"If it is him, then it's Skylar's fault. Not his."

She shot me a vicious look.

"And if it isn't him, then I'd like to see which executive is bold enough to break the rules and give you access.

"As his fiancee, it's my responsibility to clean things up for the company."

With that, she grabbed my arm and dragged me toward the elevator.

Pain shot through my scalp.

I twisted toward the front desk and shouted, "Call the police!"