When Sarah Robertson heard that Brian Warren was trying to set up a meeting with her, she almost laughed. She was sitting in her office, staring at the email her assistant had just shown her.“Brian Warren?” she repeated, raising an eyebrow. “The same man who backed out of the Denali deal years ago?”Her assistant, Mia, nodded. “Yes, ma’am. He’s been calling nonstop. He said it’s urgent.”Sarah leaned back in her chair, her eyes cold. “Let him keep calling. I’m not interested.”Mia smiled nervously. “Should I tell him you’re busy again?”Sarah nodded. “Do that. And if he calls again, block his number.”She turned back to her laptop, but her mind wasn’t on her work anymore. Memories of Brian came flooding back. Years ago, he had promised her partnership on a major project, only to stab her in the back at the last minute. He took all the credit and left her to deal with the losses.Now he wanted a meeting?Sarah’s lips curved into a faint smile. “No, Brian,” she whispered. “This time, y

The air in the hall was tense.No one spoke for a few seconds after Richard dropped the silver case full of money. Everyone had seen it — the two million dollars, clean and crisp. It was the kind of money that could buy a small house, maybe two. The guests kept clapping, but their eyes were fixed on him.Michael’s face turned red. He looked at the money, then at Jenna.“What the hell is this, Jenna?” he said angrily, his voice rising above the sound of the music.Jenna froze. She didn’t know what to say. Her throat felt dry, and her legs shook slightly. “I… I didn’t know he—”Michael kicked the basket where some of the money had been placed. The sound echoed, and everyone turned to look. “You invited him here? Why? To show off your ex-boyfriend in front of everyone?”“I didn’t mean—” Jenna began, her voice trembling.“Save it,” Michael snapped. His eyes burned with anger as he pointed at Richard. “You see him now? The man you said was a loser? Well, he just made you look like a fool

Sarah’s lips were still warm from the kiss when she pulled away. For a few seconds, she said nothing. Her chest rose and fell slowly as she looked at Richard. His eyes were kind, cool, confused, and full of mixed feelings.Sarah smirked a little. “Still think I came here just to talk?”Richard was silent. He could still taste her on his lips. He could have pulled away but he didn't. He didn’t know what to say. Everything about the night was already out of control, and now this… this kiss.Sarah’s gaze dropped to his lips again, but she quickly looked away. “Don’t read too much into that,” she said quietly. “It was just… needed.”“Needed?” Richard asked, his voice low.“Yes,” she replied simply, stepping back. “Because now I know.”“Know what?”She turned her head slightly, her long black hair brushing her shoulder. “That I’m not done with you yet.”Richard blinked. “Sarah, what are you—”She raised a hand to stop him. “Let me talk.”The cold air blew through the balcony again, but

Richard sat there for a long time, holding his phone like it was some strange object he had never seen before. Gerald's words are still echoing in his mind.“Fake.”A marriage he had tried to keep together through the pain and riddles.He could still hear Gerald’s voice, calm and full of that same arrogance that had always made Richard hate him.“You and Dianne were never truly married. It was just an arrangement. Something to quiet the reporters.”Richard swallowed hard. His mind went blank for a few seconds. He leaned back slowly in his chair, staring at the ceiling as if the answers were written there.He had loved Dianne. Maybe not perfectly, but honestly. He had fought for her, worked for her, taken insults from her father and mother just to keep her happy. And now this—this was how it ended?He let out a shaky breath and ran a hand down his face. “So it was all fake… all of it?” he whispered to himself.The memories came rushing back—every dinner where Gerald looked down on him

Money and power were two entity that works hand in hand. Things were beginning to move fast for Richard.He had thought that after the press conference, things would calm down. He believed that once the cameras went away, he would finally get a moment to breathe, to think, and maybe to fix things with Dianne. But life was not ready to give him that.Every day, there was another headline. Every channel was talking about Sarah Robertson and Richard Tucker. Reporters still stood outside his mansion, hoping to catch a glimpse of him. Some called him lucky. Others said he was a liar who fooled the rich and climbed up with deceit.Richard didn’t care what they said anymore. He was tired.But while he was trying to get his love life together, another war was already on the way.Far away, in a large office on the top floor of a tall glass building, a man named Thomas Bishop was reading a newspaper. He was in his early sixties, tall, clean-shaven, and cold-looking. His eyes fixed on the maga