**Charismatic Showmaker Lloyd**
“Benton, you really are something,” Old Charles said, lifting his glass with a tired sort of pride. His voice was low, but it carried a weight that settled heavily between them. “Harold feels humiliated, yet the old fox is still standing in business.”
Benton smirked. He could feel the eyes on him from every corner of the ballroom hungry, mocking, waiting for him to stumble. He heard their whispers dressed as laughter, the smudged insults coated in perfume and wine. But he kept his composure. That was the only weapon he had ever truly relied on.
Then Clarissa appeared before him, heels clicking against the marble floor like a judge announcing a sentence. She stopped just inches from him, her amber eyes flashing with cold fire.
“I know the Lloyd family hir
