Lured into Love (Blossom in Winter #2) - Melanie Martins Page 0,166

I should be the one pressing charges against you and Mom.”

“Petra, stay out of it,” Dad scolds. Not a chance!

“Alex?” I hear a calm, serene female voice on the phone. And thank God she piped in. I was ready to blow a fuse. “We don’t intend to vote you out. Your performance this year has been excellent. But tensions between the chairman of the board and the CEO are never good for business. We expect you to be back in New York to fix this mess.”

Before any of us can respond, Mike, the COO, steps in. “Yeah, the story published about the kidnapping and the attorney general being involved is not reassuring our clients. Your credibility took a big blow, mate.” My blood pressure is climbing with every word coming out of his mouth, and it takes everything in me not to refute his statements. “We don’t want this to get worse and then have to put you out to keep them.”

“Mike, no one is gonna pull their investments because of this nonsense,” Alex presses on. “This is just a poorly calculated move by our chairman and his ex-wife.”

“Some clients are seriously worried,” Mike confesses. “You know, these kinds of stories can spread quickly. A young woman, barely legal, who is the daughter of our chairman…” Mike exhales a rush of air, trying to remain as politically correct as possible. “Our clients are not happy with your lack of ethics.”

Alex shakes his head, knowing all too well that it’s all bullshit. “I will make some calls, don’t worry.”

“Are you gonna come back to fix this mess, yes or no?” the female voice asks again.

“Look, I can’t promise I will be back in New York, but I promise I will fix this from where I am. I will contact our PR team and issue a press release and call our clients.”

“Alright, you better fix this mess and fast,” she adds. “We don’t need any more bad publicity.”

“Will do, bye.” And Alex hangs up.

Now that it’s just the two of us and his lawyer, I say, “I can’t believe Dad was trying to fire you.” Shaking my head, I look downward in disgust at what he just did. “You guys are best friends.”

“He’s being pressured by Tess. Your dad is innocent.”

And I blink twice, totally baffled at how Alex is still trying to protect him. “Dad is an accomplice; he’s not innocent,” I correct him. And, drawing in a deep breath, I ask, “Ryan, may I have a moment alone with Alex, please?”

“Sure…” Ryan walks off the terrace, closing the door behind him.

Once we are left totally alone, I look my fiancé in the eye and tell him, “You know that my loyalty toward you is unconditional.” A sincere smile tugs on his lips at my statement, and we keep our hands just as tightly entwined. “But I need to know the truth.” He cocks his head to the side in confusion. And knowing that I have to be a bit more specific, I say, “What does my mom have against you two?”

But he breaks eye contact just as fast, pulling his hand away from mine. “You know I can’t tell you that.”

His words hurt me like a knife to the chest, rendering me totally speechless. Then, nothing but a dense silence fills the air between us. “Damn it,” I let out. Dragging some precious air into my lungs, I exhale loudly. “They are attacking me, trying to strip my freedom away, and you can’t even tell me the reason why they are doing all this?”

His expression is just as stoic, cold, and unbothered. “My attorney is gonna defend you properly. You have nothing to worry about.”

I can’t help but huff and shake my head at his comment. “So you won’t tell me what’s going on? Even after everything I’m going through because of you?” I repeat, making sure that’s what he intends to do.

“You know what’s going on,” Alex responds, confirming my thoughts. “What your mother has against me and your dad is totally irrelevant.”

“Until the day she blows it up in court,” I rebuke.

“She won’t,” he snaps back. “She’s smarter than that.”

I clench my teeth and dip my head slowly in disgust at the bitter taste of the exclusion I’m being subjected to. And although I trust him deeply, I have the sharp sensation that it is not mutual. “So you don’t trust me enough to tell me the truth?” My eyes meet his again, and I hope he can