جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 8

In the summit hall, Tiffany stood there in her evening gown, pinching her nose like she'd smelled something rotten.She jabbed a finger at the old man in the worn jacket in front of her, her voice shrill."Where'd this smelly bum crawl in from? You think you belong at an event like this?""Do you even know who the people here are? If you ruin my dress, could you afford to pay for it?"Dr. Whitmore's face went ashen, the finger he pointed at her trembling."You... you're impossible.""I was invited to this summit. This is my badge."Tiffany let out a cold laugh and snatched the badge out of his hand.Without even glancing at it, she flicked it into the trash can beside her."Faking a badge just to sneak in for free food and drinks. How shameless."The guests around them turned to look, and a few started whispering.Adrian stood right beside her, and not only did he not stop her, his eyes were full of indulgence.He thoughtfully handed her a tissue so she could wipe the hand that had tou

I clapped a hand over my mouth in mock surprise and gasped."What? That beggar was actually Dr. Whitmore?""Babe, why didn't you say something sooner? After the way you and Tiff treated him yesterday, he must be furious."Adrian stopped short and glared at me."How was I supposed to know it was him?""Dressed like that, who could've recognized him?""And you, why didn't you stop Tiff yesterday? You're the COO. Are those eyes just for decoration?"Without a second thought, he dumped the blame on me.In my last life, I ran myself ragged and talked myself hoarse cleaning up his messes.And he took every bit of it for granted.This time, my eyes reddened at once and the tears came spilling down."That's not fair, babe.""Yesterday you were defending Tiff so hard, I assumed the old man was some nobody con artist.""I was only going along with what you wanted.""And you're the one who said Tiff had a hard day and wanted to buy her that bag."I left him speechless, his face reddening and then

The next day, the medical world's press conference was packed and buzzing.Cameras and microphones from every major outlet were already set up.Everyone was eager to learn who exactly was behind this out-of-nowhere company, Astra Pharmaceuticals.Adrian sat in the front row in a well-cut suit.Tiffany sat beside him, dressed to the nines as well.After yesterday's fight, the two of them seemed to have patched things up."You look so handsome today, Adrian. You'll definitely land that distribution thing."Tiffany clung to his arm, sweet-talking him, though her eyes darted around the room.Adrian adjusted his tie and let out a confident little scoff."Of course. In all of Halcyon Bay, who besides the Vances has the muscle to take on Dr. Whitmore's patents?""Once I land this, let's see if those debt-chasing shareholders still dare run their mouths at me."He turned to Tiffany, a warning in his voice."Behave yourself today. Don't cause any more trouble."Tiffany nodded eagerly, meek as a

"Mom, Dad, I bought you a villa in a seaside town. The climate's lovely, perfect for taking it easy.""I'll send someone to pick you up tomorrow. From now on, just enjoy your lives. I've got the company handled."My parents' contented laughter came through the line."Viv, as long as you're doing well, that's all we need."After I hung up, my eyes went a little red.In my past life, my death had left my parents at Adrian's mercy, and he had thrown them into the street, where they died alone in the cold.This time, I had finally kept them safe. And I had kept myself safe too.The auction went remarkably smoothly.With the Vance scandal splashed across every headline, no legitimate company was willing to take on the mess.The shell company I had arranged took the plant and production lines for a song.Once the acquisition closed, I overhauled the plant from top to bottom.I swept out all the executives who had followed Adrian.I promoted a crew of genuinely talented engineers and folded t