Chapter 7 - The Masterclass
"Evelyn... please," Julian gasped, rounding his desk with his hands raised in a pleading gesture. "There’s been a massive misunderstanding. This morning—I didn't recognize you in the light—"
"You recognized me, Julian," I said coldly, staying completely stationary as he approached. "You looked me in the eyes. You saw the dress I packed this morning. You saw the matcha dripping off my chest. And you chose your mistress over your wife."
Chloe gasped, her jaw dropping open. "Wife? She's... she's your wife?"
"She’s the CEO of the parent company!" Julian shouted at Chloe, his eyes wild with terror. "She owns eighty percent of this firm! She owns this entire building!"
Chloe’s eyes bulged. She stumbled backward, bumping against the glass coffee table, her gaze darting frantically from Julian to my charcoal-grey suit.
"You... you were the new CEO?" Chloe choked out, her voice trembling violently. "The welcome gala... was for you?"
"It was," I said softly. "Until you decided I belonged in the service elevator."
I stepped toward Julian’s desk and picked up the thick blue audit folder Marcus Vance had prepared for me.
"Over $4.2 million stolen through Thorne Hospitality Group," I read aloud, my voice echoing through the quiet office. "Embezzlement, corporate fraud, and breach of fiduciary duty."
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"Evelyn, I can explain!" Julian cried out, dropping to his knees right there on the Persian rug in front of his desk. He reached out to grab the hem of my trousers. "She manipulated me! Chloe forced me to set up those accounts! It was all her idea!"
"Julian!" Chloe shrieked, her face turning crimson with betrayal. "You told me you loved me! You told me you were going to leave this boring woman and make me the first lady of the company!"
