Semua Bab FAKING IT WITH THE BILLIONAIRE : Bab 31 - Bab 40

Alex left immediately.Izzy sat alone in her hospital room, the flash drive still sitting on the table beside her bed. She stared at it as if it might explode.A nurse came in to check her blood pressure. It was high again."You need to calm down," the nurse said."I know.""Whatever's stressing you***""I can't avoid it."The nurse frowned but said nothing.After she left, Izzy called Sophie."Vivienne's in the hospital," she said when Sophie answered. "Possible stroke.""Jesus. When?""Just now. Alex went to be with her.""How convenient.""What do you mean?""Izzy, come on. Alex confronted Vivienne yesterday, she admitted everything, and today she has a medical emergency? That's suspicious.""You think she's faking?""I think Vivienne's very good at controlling narratives. What better way to avoid consequences than to become the victim?""That's cynical even for you.""Maybe. But I've dealt with people like Vivienne before. They don't go down without a fight."Izzy rubbed her templ

The doctor refused."Absolutely not," Dr. Patel said when Izzy brought it up. "Your blood pressure is still unstable. Leaving the hospital for a board meeting is out of the question.""It's two hours. Three at most.""Two hours during which you could have a crisis with no medical support.""I'll bring a nurse.""Ms. Torres, I understand you want to be involved, but your health and your baby's health have to come first.""This is about my baby's future. About the family they're being born into.""What if we compromise?" Sophie said. "What if the meeting came to her? The foundation has video conferencing. Set up a laptop, let Izzy participate remotely. She stays in bed, stays monitored, but she's still present."Dr. Patel considered this. "You wouldn't be able to vote if you're not physically present.""I don't have a vote anyway," Izzy said. "I just want to observe.""And if the discussion becomes stressful?""Then I'll disconnect."The doctor looked at her charts. "Fine. But the momen

Alex moved into the hospital room.Not officially. The nurses didn't approve. But he brought a sleeping bag, a pillow, and refused to leave."This is ridiculous," Izzy said. "You have a foundation to run.""I can run it from here.""You need actual sleep. In an actual bed.""I'll sleep when your blood pressure stabilizes."He set up a makeshift office in the corner. Laptop, files, phone charger. He took calls in the hallway and came back to work beside her bed."You're hovering," Izzy said."I'm present. There's a difference.""Barely."But secretly, she was grateful. The nights were the worst. When the hospital went quiet, her mind wouldn't stop spinning through worst-case scenarios.What if the baby came too early?What if something went wrong?What if Julian destroyed the foundation and Alex blamed her for not stopping it?"Stop thinking so loud," Alex said from his corner at two AM."I'm not thinking loud.""You breathe differently when you're anxious.""That's creepy.""That's ob

Sophie called back two hours later with confirmation."Patricia Chen wired $500,000 to Sentinel Group three months ago. Different account, shell company, but I traced it back to her.""Can you prove it?" Izzy asked."Not in court. But enough to confront her.""Does Alex know?""I'm heading to the hospital now."Alex arrived twenty minutes after Sophie. He looked exhausted."Patricia Chen," he said flatly. "The one person who seemed genuinely helpful.""She played us all," Sophie said. "The supportive board member act was a perfect cover.""Why now? Her sister was fired three years ago.""Lila's death gave her an opening," Izzy said. "A way to destroy Vivienne and the foundation together. Revenge for Sarah, vindication for Lila."Alex paced the room. "Morrison. Patricia probably contacted her, offered money for testimony.""Or just gave her a platform," Sophie said. "Morrison might actually want to speak. Patricia's just ensuring it happens at the worst possible moment.""The gala.""M

Vivienne called at 2 am in the morning. Alex almost didn't answer, but something made him pick up."You humiliated me," she said. No greeting, no preamble."I told the truth.""You destroyed thirty years of work for a woman who's been dead for three years.""I honored Lila's memory. There's a difference.""Lila was weak. She couldn't handle the pressure."Alex felt his jaw tighten. "Lila was strong enough to see what was wrong. You just punished her for it.""I built that foundation from nothing. Every dollar, every program, every success—that was me.""And every failure, every person you hurt, every line you crossed—that was also you."Silence."I'm your mother," Vivienne said finally."Then act like one. Take responsibility instead of playing victim.""I'll never forgive you for this.""I know. I've made my peace with that."She hung up.Izzy stirred beside him. "Your mother?""Yeah.""How did it go?""About as expected. She's hurt and angry and blaming everyone but herself.""Do yo