“What do you mean by the investors backed out?! We were supposed to seal those deals and begin the automobile project immediately!" Ryan stomped a hand on the table as he shouted, staring at the grim faces in front of him.The boardroom went silent as everyone stared at Ryan's angrily twisted face.“I'm not talking to dumb people, am I? What happened to the fucking investors that was supposed to partner with us? The deal was worth millions! Are y'all not doing your work as you should?”A middle aged woman cleared her throat. “Mr Ryan, I think you should calm down. The investors backed out of their own will and not due to anybody's fault,”“That's bullshit!” Ryan scoffed, pointing a finger at her. “Y'all do realize that those people are crucial to the growth of this company, right? We were just about to finalize everything, so give me a logical explanation to why they backed out when everything was going just fine!”“They got a better and mouthwatering profit offer from another firm,”

“When did you start smoking stuff like a loser?” Ryan frowned as he looked at Layla. His eyes shifted to the numerous cigarette stumps on the table and he scoffed. “I thought you quitted the habit a long time ago?”Layla sent him a hard glare before rolling her eyes and pretending like he had not just spoken.“I'm talking to you, Layla!” He snapped, annoying creeping into his voice.Layla scoffed. “You're talking to me? What business is it of yours what I do and what I do not do? You'd rather caution me than do your duty as a man?”Ryan sighed. “If you're talking about Adrian, then—”“I'm damn talking about him, goddamnit!” Layla hissed, throwing the last butt of cigarette on the floor. “You've lost your company, everything you've worked for! Now what? You're proud of yourself and the fact that you went to prison?”Ryan bit his tongue as the sarcasm slapped hard at him. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out, so he hissed, collapsing back into the chair.“I put my reputat

Adrian frowned. He looked first at her before his attention drifted to the paper. “What's this?”“That's diagnosis from three different hospitals. Take a look,” Layla slurred disinterestingly.Curious, Adrian picked up the paper, allowing his eyes travel through the content. A sharp feeling of dread ran down his spine and he gasped before sharply looking up at her. “How am I sure this isn't fabricated?”“You must be insane if you think I'll joke about something as sensitive as my life,”Adrian looked at her suspiciously, but her eyes remained determined. She didn't look like she was lying. If anything, she looked sad. It pricked at him so much that all he wanted to do at that moment was reach out and hug her.No matter how much he hated Layla now, she was his first love and he couldn't just sit and watch something this drastic happen to her. “I don't need your pity, Adrian,” Layla said tightly, hating the look in his eyes.“Then why are you here?”“Because I want this war or whateve

If Layla was excited, she didn't show it. She just nodded and allowed her eyes to wander around the big house. Her breath caught in her throat at the opulence that Adrian now enjoyed and for some reasons, sadness settled in her stomach.When she looked up, Adrian was already looking at her with those seductive eyes of his. She felt exposed, like he could see right through her. Like he knew her thoughts and what she was planning.Right then, her body remembered his touch in ways her mind refused to. Her cheeks burned as her thoughts spiraled. It was really crazy. How could she want him again? Didn't every feeling for him die the moment she betrayed him? How could she feel drawn to him again like she wanted him more, when her entire life, she had trained herself to hate him.“Don't look at me like that. It's weird,” Adrian's voice snapped at her and she swallowed in embarrassment, dragging her eyes away.“I'm just tired,” She sighed.“Well, that's doesn't sound like my business. You're

The hotel was thick with excitement as music blared from the speakers. The night air was cold and people flooded the hall in their best clothes. Layla stood in a corner of the room smiling widely as she looked around in admiration. Gosh, she was able to pull this off finally. Everywhere was screaming luxury.Around her, people swayed their bodies to the melody from the music. The ambiance and setting of the hall was really cool. And the decorations? Perfect.From the side of her eye, she saw Paige walk into the room and instantly, her mood changed. The bitch was dressed in a glittering gold dress that kept attracting attention. Her ass jiggled as she walked in that calm, confident manner that made the breath in Layla's throat feel tight.“That psycho, I thought she came here to sing. Why dress like the main character?!” She hissed under her breath as she stormed towards her. “Hi, birthday girl,” Paige smiled, but anyone with eyes could see the smile was fake."What the hell were you