Chapter Seventeen
Noah’s face darkened like a storm cloud as he realized his usual tactics had not only failed but had actually made his situation significantly worse. The humiliation burned through him like acid, but he wasn’t ready to give up entirely.
Anna stepped forward quickly, her voice taking on the authoritative tone she used in business negotiations. “Miss Coleman, I believe there’s been a misunderstanding. Noah is my personal assistant, which qualifies him to be present at this shareholders‘ meeting.”
“Your personal assistant?” Aria repeated, her eyebrows rising in apparent amusement
“Yes,” Anna confirmed firmly. “He handles many of my business affairs and has every right to attend meetings that concern my investments.”
Aria’s expression didn’t change in the slightest. Her voice remained as cold and cutting as winter wind. “I believe I’ve made myself clear twice already. Allow me to repeat myself one final time.”
The room fell into absolute silence as Aria’s gaze fixed on Noah with predatory intensity.
“If this irrelevant person remains in this boardroom for one more minute,” she said with deadly calm, “I will have security physically remove him from the premises.”
As if summoned by her words, three large security guards appeared in the doorway, their presence immediately shifting the atmosphere in the room from uncomfortable to openly threatening.
“Ma’am?” the lead guard asked respectfully, his eyes fixed on Noah
Noah felt panic rising in his chest as he realized that Aria Coleman was not bluffing. Unlike Anna, who could be manipulated through guilt and emotional appeals, this woman operated on an entirely different
level.
Desperation made him reckless. “But wait!” he shouted, his voice cracking slightly. “If I’m not allowed. here, then why is Pervis allowed to stay?”
Anna’s eyes lit up as she realized Noah had made an excellent point. “That’s right,” she said, turning to face Aria with renewed confidence. “Pervis isn’t a shareholder either. He has no more business being
here than Noah does.”
“Actually,” Noah continued, gaining momentum from Anna’s support, “Pervis is just as much of an outsider as I am. Why the double standard?”
Aria looked at both of them with a cold sneer that somehow managed to convey both amusement and contempt simultaneously.
“Because,” she said simply, “Pervis also owns shares in this hospital.”
The words hit the room like a thunderbolt. Several board members turned to look at Pervis with renewed
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Chapley Sisentrer
interest, while others whispered among themselves in confusion.
“That’s impossible!” Noah shouted, his voice rising to near–hysteria. “He’s nobody! He’s Anna’s unemployed husband
“Is it impossible?” Aria asked mildly, though her eyes remained fixed on Noah with laser–like intensity.
“Yes!” Noah insisted desperately. “Where would he get the money to buy hospital shares? He doesn’t even have a job!”
Aria’s smile grew wider, though it somehow became even colder. “I suppose that depends on your definition of employment.”
She turned her attention to Pervis, and for the first time since entering the room, her expression softened
slightly.
“Whatever Pervis wants,” she said clearly, her voice carrying to every corner of the conference room, 1 will make sure he gets it.”
The implications of her words hung in the air like a toxic cloud. To most people in the room, Aria’s statement could be interpreted in multiple ways. But Anna heard something very different–something that made her blood boil with rage and disgust.
Anna’s face darkened as she processed what she believed she was hearing. In her mind, Aria’s declaration sounded like the possessive promise of a wealthy woman to her kept lover.
“I never thought Pervis would sink so low,” Anna said, her voice dripping with contempt and
disappointment.
Pervis looked at his estranged wife with something that might have been pity flickering in his eyes. The woman he had once loved, the woman he had sacrificed everything for, was revealing herself to be exactly as shallow and judgmental as everyone had warned him she would be.
“And I never thought you would become this foolish,” he replied quietly. “I always believed you were a smart woman, Anna. It seems I was wrong about that too.”
The security guards moved forward at Aria’s subtle nod, flanking Noah on either side. His face had gone pale again as he realized his last desperate gambit had failed completely.
“Waiti
Noah pleaded as the guards reached for his arms. This isn’t fair! I demand to speak to whoever’s really in charge here!”
“You are speaking to whoever’s in charge,” Aria replied with icy finality. “Goodbye, Mr. Patterson.”
Noah was escorted from the room with all the ceremony typically reserved for removing unwanted refuse, his protests echoing down the hallway until the conference room doors closed with a decisive
click
Anna watched Noah’s humiliating exit with a mixture of anger and embarrassment, but her attention
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quickly returned to what she perceived as the larger issue at hand.
“Fine,” she said, her voice taking on the cold, controlled tone she used when delivering ultimatume T admit I was wrong to try cutting off your grandmother’s medical expenses. That was unnecessarily covet and I apologize for it.”
Pervis said nothing, simply watching her with those same pitying eyes that were beginning to underve
“But you,” Anna continued, pointing an accusatory finger at him, “should have had more dignity than this
“Dignity?” Pervis repeated, as if tasting an unfamiliar word.
“Yes, dignity!” Anna’s voice rose as her composure finally cracked completely. “To betray our marriage over something so trivial, to become another woman’s plaything and sell your body for money and influence–it’s absolutely disgusting”
“Sell my body?” Pervis asked, genuine confusion evident in his voice
“Don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about,” Anna snarled. “It’s obvious what kind of arrangement you have with her. She gives you money and shares in her business ventures, and you give her… other services.”
The accusation hung in the air like a poisonous fog, and Anna could see several board members shifting uncomfortably in their seats.
“You’ve become nothing more than a male escort,” Anna continued relentlessly, “and a cheap one at that At least have the decency to admit what you are instead of pretending this is some kind of legitimate business relationship”
Pervis stared at her for a long moment, his expression cycling through surprise, disappointment, and finally settling on something that looked very much like profound sadness.
Chapter
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
