Kiss Me While The World Burns のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 81 - チャプター 90

The sleek elevators of the Luxore corporate headquarters slid open with a quiet chime. Victoria stepped directly into the bustling chaos of the top floor, moving with a very noticeable, very painful limp. She hadn't even gone back to her own apartment to change. She was still wearing the exact same silk blouse and black skirt from the night before, her blonde hair thrown up into a hurried, imperfect bun. To keep from being spotted by the rest of her staff looking like an absolute mess, Victoria had purposely bypassed the main lobby and taken the private VVIP entrance straight to the executive wing. Kany was standing by the main double doors of the design suite, holding a digital tablet and barking orders at two assistants. The second her eyes landed on Victoria, Kany’s mouth dropped open so wide it looked like her jaw might unhinge. She stopped mid-sentence, dismissed the assistants with a quick wave of her hand, and marched straight over, dragging Victoria toward the private execu

Giordano didn't say another word into the receiver. He simply cut the call, slamming the phone face-down onto the mahogany desk. The sudden silence in the room was suffocating.Bruce stepped closer, his face tight with worry. "Giordano, think about it. Jamie has been running her mouth to her father ever since you threw her out of your car under the pouring rain in Monaco. Her old man is still completely furious about that. For her to call you right after an Interpol leak drops? It’s too perfect. She’s trying to see if the bait worked, or if her dad's connections finally hit you.""Jamie is an idiot, and her father’s anger doesn't give her the clearance to pull files from my lower vault server," Giordano said. His voice dropped into a low, terrifyingly calm register that was far worse than his shouting. He looked up at Bruce, his dark eyes hollow and completely dead. "Victoria does. She was in my bed. She had my phone. She saw the network codes. I don't want to hear another word defen

The digital wall clock silently shifted to 11:00 PM.Victoria set her tablet down on the mahogany desk, stretching her arms. She had finally traded her structured work dress for a loose silk button-down shirt and leggings. Her hair was thrown into a messy bun. Downstairs, the faint sound of the marketing team laughing echoed through the vents. The global campaign was locked into the automated queue, ticking down to midnight.The heavy wood door to her private office clicked open."I told you I’d be down in ten minutes, Kany," Victoria said, not turning around from the window. "I’m just finishing the backup logs."The door slammed shut. The heavy deadbolt slid into place with a sharp, metallic snap.Victoria spun around, her posture instantly hardening.Giordano stood inside the room. He wasn't in his usual tailored executive suit. He wore a dark, heavy jacket, his massive frame blocking the exit entirely. His dark hair was messy, and his eyes were hollow—empty of his usual arrogant t

"Well," Kany said smoothly, stepping into the room and closing the door behind her with her foot. "He definitely didn't look like he was here for a glass of bubbly." Victoria didn't answer right away. She stood with her posture painfully rigid, her chest still heaving beneath the loose silk shirt. The scent of Giordano’s heavy, dark cologne still hung stubbornly in the air, a suffocating reminder of the storm that had just ripped through her sanctuary. "What the hell happened?" Kany asked, her tone shifting from playful to sharply protective as she set the two crystal flutes down on the edge of the mahogany desk. She looked at the locked deadbolt, then back to Victoria’s flushed face and disheveled hair. "Do you need me to hire someone to assassinate him? Because I know a guy in Marseilles who owes me a very large favor, and I can make the call before the champagne even loses its fizz." Victoria let out a sharp, bitter breath, waving her hand dismissively through the air as if she

"Get Sergei on the phone right now," Victoria said, her voice sharp as she stared out at the street. The party down the hall was still loud, but she was completely over it. "Tell him he’s in charge of the company for the next two weeks. Everything goes through him." Kany stopped holding her glass mid-air, looking totally confused. "Sergei? The legal guy? Vee, he’s a scary lawyer, not a people person. Why are you giving him control? Are you actually taking a vacation?" "Something like that," Victoria muttered, gripping her tablet tightly. All the fun of selling out her collection in eighteen minutes was gone, replaced by pure irritation. "I need to get away from Giordano and his crazy drama while I figure out who stole my EMP. Leaving New York right now is the best move." "You think whoever set you up is just going to stop because you pack a bag?" Kany asked in a quiet whisper as some guests walked past. "No, but if I stay here, Giordano will keep bringing his dangerous street figh