Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 1 - Chapitre 10

I'd barely ended the call when Matthew came back into the conference room to grab the travel documents he'd left on the table.His eyes dropped to the phone in my hand. "Did you call your family again?"His expression turned sour before I could even get a word in edgewise."If you have a problem with the schedule, take it up with HR. Don't drag personal matters into company business. I'm not bending the rules for you, Elena. So, stop putting me in a position where I have to explain myself to everyone else."I said nothing.Matthew picked up the holiday schedule and tossed it onto the table in front of me. "The handover isn't finished. So, where do you think you're going? Three department heads are still waiting for your signature."He pulled another folder toward him, already moving on as if the conversation were settled."Get it done already. And before you leave, send the settlement reports for all three ports to the vendors. If anything comes up while I'm away, deal with it.

By the time I got to the lobby, I had already been waiting nearly 20 minutes for the car that was supposed to take me to the hospital.The receptionist made a call, glanced at me before beginning hesitantly. "Mrs. Westbrook... I'm sorry, but the car was reassigned. They need it for an airport run."I followed her gaze to the side entrance, where the driver was loading luggage into a black Bentley.It was my Bentley.My father had given it to me as a wedding gift. However, I had somehow lost the right to use my own damn car to get to the hospital after Matthew added it to the company's executive fleet.I could still remember what he had told me the year before."You agreed to put it in the company fleet, Elena. That means it follows the company schedule, and the drivers work for the company. They're not our personal chauffeurs. If you need to go somewhere, call a car like everyone else."He was out of town at the time, and I was covering for him while several clients flew in for

I woke up close to noon on the first day of Christmas break, still lying in my hospital bed at St. Rose Medical Center.My phone showed that I had a total of 43 missed calls—every single one from Matthew. He'd also forwarded me several overdue-payment emails, each with the same message attached."Handle this immediately."My phone rang again before I could put it down.I reached for it and accidentally swiped across the screen, answering the call.Matthew's voice came through immediately. "Elena, have you called the vendors? Everyone knows Harrington pulled its investment. I've already got companies saying they won't come back for project meetings after Christmas."I said nothing."Are you listening to me?"Still, I didn't answer."I gave you half a day off for the surgery. I didn't tell you to disappear. Call the vendors and tell them we will settle everything after Christmas."His voice sharpened. "I want this handled within the hour. And don't have them calling me about it

The Christmas break had barely ended when Matthew stepped off the plane and got a call from the CFO.Several suppliers had stopped extending credit to Westbrook Group. The contractor handling the terminal expansion refused to continue work until all outstanding invoices were paid, and clients who had planned to attend the upcoming project briefing canceled one after another.That was when Matthew finally started going through the messages he'd ignored all week.He'd been busy taking Bianca to galas, yacht parties, and dinners for the entire week, barely thinking about the problems back home. He'd assumed I would take care of everything, just like I always did.Whenever the CFO called about overdue payments, Matthew had given him the same answer."Call Elena."Then, he'd hang up.It had never occurred to him that I might actually stop cleaning up his messes.Matthew figured he was safe since he now knew that I knew Uncle Gabe. He thought I'd eventually calm down, call him, and g

The moderator handed me the microphone. "Ms. Lambert, please go ahead."I walked down the aisle and onto the stage.Bianca stepped aside immediately, clutching the files to her chest.Matthew didn't. He stepped in front of me before I could reach the podium. "This is a Westbrook Group presentation. You resigned, Elena. You can't just walk up here and take over."I opened my folder and handed him a copy of the management agreement. "The facility belongs to me. I gave Westbrook Group the right to manage it, but I never transferred ownership."I tapped the document in his hand. "Also, the termination notice has already been delivered."Matthew's expression changed.I held his gaze. "So, if you're going to use my property to make promises to clients, you might want to check with me first."He glanced down at the agreement before quickly closing the folder. "We don't need to do this here. We can talk about it privately.""Move."I stepped past him, took the microphone, and turned