All Chapters of CEO's Dare Bride : Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

At 6:00 p.m., Ace arrived at Emma’s office. She waited in the lobby. She wore a dark blue dress. It was simple but elegant. Her hair was neat. She looked beautiful but tired. It had been a long day.Ace stepped out of the car and walked to Emma, offering his hand. “Are you ready?” he asked.Emma smiled slightly. She took his hand. “Let’s go.”They got into the car. “So how was your day?” Emma asked.“It was tiring. We’re trying to work with another company on a project, but it’s not going well. They keep asking for things that just don’t make sense,” Ace replied.Emma looked over at him as she started the car. “What kind of things?”“They keep changing what they want,” he said, rubbing his forehead. “At first, they said the budget was the problem. Now they want to be the only ones we work with and to control most of the project. It feels like they want all the power but none of the responsibility.”“That sounds awful,” Emma said, turning onto the road. “Have you and your team thought

Patricia held her cup of coffee with both hands. She is somehow enjoying the heat from the cup. She leaned forward, with her lips curved slightly upward. She was listening to what Nathan was saying.Nathan, who sat across from her, lowered his voice. “ I don’t believe in Emma and Ace’s marriage. I think they are hiding something,” he said. He paused before asking, “Didn’t you say you were in a relationship with Ace for a long time? How come they are suddenly married?” “Patricia, I need you to be honest with me now that we are close, what is your relationship with Oceanic? Why are you targeting the company? I know Emma stole your boyfriend. But you can still get back on her in other ways.” Nathan asked, confused.Patricia looked him straight in the eyes and said, “ I want to destroy Emma, Oceanic Group, and everything it represents. I have my reasons, which I cannot share with you just yet. I hope you understand.““Yeah, it's okay, at least we both have the same common enemy, two

Ace was in his office, worrying about Emma and the situation at her workplace. She had been stressed, and he thought he needed to do something to help her relax for a while. He picked up his phone and called his mother. After two rings, she answered.“Hello, Mom. How are you?” Ace asked.“Ace, are you alright? You sound distant,” Lilian replied.“Mom, I’m fine. I need a favour from you, that is, if you are free,” he said.“What is it? You know you can ask me anything. By the way, how is Emma?” she asked.“She’s okay. The favour is about her. Her job has been stressing her out lately. Please call her and take her out today so she can relax a bit. You two can go shopping and have lunch. Do something to take her mind off work,” Ace explained.“Alright, I will do that,” Lilian agreed.“Thank you, Mom. She needs a break,” Ace said. His phone went dead. Ace tried to concentrate on his files, and then Brian entered Ace’s office.“Hey Ace, you wanted to see me?” Brian asked.“Yeah, come in,”

Brian walked into Ace’s office with a tablet in his hands and looked worried. The light from the tablet shines on his face.“It’s everywhere now,” Brian said.Ace didn’t answer. He held out his hand, took the tablet, and scrolled.Headline after headline filled the screen.Rafael Donovan Claims Control of Blacke Tech.Donovan Announces New Leadership Direction for Tech Giant.CEO Ace Blacke Yet to Comment.Ace set the tablet on the desk. His jaw muscle flexed, then it relaxed. His look was calm but cold. “It took them a few days to push it out to every media outlet,” he said. “That means it was timed. They know what they are doing.”Brian sat across from him. “He’s making it sound like a done deal. Investors will start asking questions.”“That’s the point,” Ace replied. “He plans to shake their confidence and make them doubt my control.”“Then there’s only one way he could get this far,” Brian said. “Inside help.”Ace leaned back in his chair. “I know. But until I have names, I’m not

Nathan closed the door behind him. He walked straight to the table where Rafael placed a folder. Patricia was already focused on her screen. Nathan opened the folder and looked at the contents. “The story is out. It’s picking up speed. Stocks are dropping.”Rafael turned the folder toward Patricia. “Keep buying. No names. Use the accounts I sent to you earlier.”Nathan looked at another page. “Are we waiting for the price to drop by twenty percent before we buy?”“Lower if we can; the lower the price goes, the better for us,” said Rafael.Patricia looked up from her screen, then said. “Emma’s quiet about all of this. She is not making any form of public moves.”“She’s thinking about the situation. I know her very well; we were together for many years. I know how her brain works.” Rafael said. “I’ll say we let her keep thinking while we finish up our job,” Rafael said, smiling.Nathan kept reading. “Are we timing this with Oceanic and Blacke?”“Yes, same day,” Rafael replied. “We will