Semua Bab A Lie That Ruined Me : Bab 51 - Bab 60

┈◆┈┈◇┈┈•⊰⊱•┈◆┈◇┈┈ Leonardo┈◆┈┈◇┈┈•⊰⊱•┈◆┈◇┈┈At ten, every member of the board had taken their seat around the long table in the conference room.Andrei sat to my right, several financial reports arranged neatly in front of him.Natalie sat farther down the table beside an empty chair with a folder resting in front of her.I hadn't expected her to attend. I looked at Andrei, but his expression gave nothing away.Apparently, this was going to be one of those mornings.I looked around the room before settling into my chair. “Let's begin.” The company's latest figures appeared on the screen at the far end of the room."Revenue has stabilized over the last four weeks. The decline has stopped and several of our delayed accounts have resumed activity.”“Not all of them," I said.“No." “How much have we recovered?" Andrei answered before the board chairman could."Operating losses have narrowed considerably. Two major partners have restored their previous payment schedules and

┈◆┈┈◇┈┈•⊰⊱•┈◆┈◇┈┈ Leonardo┈◆┈┈◇┈┈•⊰⊱•┈◆┈◇┈┈The Valenti contract sat open on my desk and Andrei stood across from me, reading through the marked pages.“She understands financial risk,” he said.I looked up from the document. “Apparently she studies Finance and International Business.”“That explains part of it,” he said.I glanced at him. "What explains the rest?”He shrugged. "Attention to detail.”I looked back at the folder in front of me. “Finance reviewed the contract twice before it reached the board and Legal reviewed the agreement." “Yes." I leaned back in my chair, " and yet neither was able to catch the clause.”Andrei closed the folder. "The minimum volume adjustment is buried beneath the renewal conditions." “It’s easy to overlook if you're reviewing the agreement from the perspective of the first year projections,” he said.“Which is exactly what they did… and Natalie didn't," he added.I said nothing because that was the part that bothered me.She wasn'

❈─────≪ °❀° ≫─────❈ Natalie ❈─────≪ °❀° ≫─────❈By seven in the morning, I stepped into the hallway already dressed for work.My blazer was neatly fitted, my hair carefully arranged and my bag rested over my shoulder.I had barely taken a few steps when Leonardo emerged from his room.For a second, I assumed that like any other day we were both heading to the company, but then he looked at me.“You won't need to come to the company today.” I stopped in my steps. “Why?" “You have something else to do." The certainty in his voice immediately made me suspicious."And what exactly is that?”"Shopping. Then packing.”I stared at him. "Shopping?”"You're coming to Milan with me.”I blinked, certain I had misunderstood him. “Milan?" "A business trip.”I let out a quiet breath. “Since when?" “The meeting was already on the schedule." “And you decided to tell me this morning?" “I decided to tell you when you needed to know.”I opened my mouth, but he continued."It's for

❈─────≪ °❀° ≫─────❈ Natalie ❈─────≪ °❀° ≫─────❈I couldn't sleep. I had spent most of the night sitting by the window, watching the streets of Milan change beneath me.When I first looked outside, the roads had been almost empty, but then the city began to wake. More headlights appeared, shopkeepers started opening their doors, and the quiet streets became crowded with people heading somewhere.Only then did I realize morning had arrived.I looked at the time on my phone and sighed quietly, rubbing my tired eyes.I hadn't meant to stay awake all night but sleep had never come easily on this date.There was just something about this date that had never felt like an ordinary day to me. Every year, no matter how much time passed, it always seemed to arrive with the same heaviness.It's been three years, yet thinking about it never made the burden feel lighter.A knock sounded against the door, and I turned toward it, confused. Leonardo was still in his room and I wasn'

❈─────≪ °❀° ≫─────❈ Natalie ❈─────≪ °❀° ≫─────❈The first thing I heard when I arrived at the campus was my own name whispered like a warning.Early that morning, I had already changed clothes twice and checked my reflection so many times that I had stopped counting.It was my first day back and I had no idea what frightened me more; the possibility that everyone would stare or the possibility that they wouldn't.Being ignored would have been easier but it would also have confirmed that I no longer belonged there.In the end, I chose a simple blouse, tailored trousers and flats; something that wouldn't attract attention. I carried the same handbag I had used before my life became tangled in rumors.When I walked out of the elevator, Leonardo was waiting by the entrance, his briefcase in one hand and his phone in the other.“You're ready?" “Yes," I said.He glanced at his watch. “Good. I'm taking you." He slipped his phone into his pocket.I stopped. "You're driving me