HER FACE, MY WIFE'S SHADOW

Chapter 17: Bring Your Wife

Alexander's POV

After spending an hour having drinks with Williams at the bar owned by Sterling Holdings. I headed straight to the headquarters to catch up on the mountain of work I had neglected since the day I found Aria.

Reaching the towering glass of the Sterling Holdings building, I was met with a wall of dozens of reporters swarming the entrance of the gate, thrusting microphones and cameras, shouting Isabella's name in a relentless chant.

The moment they spotted my car, they rushed the hood like a pack of starving wolves, throwing numerous questions at me.

“Mr Alexander Sterling, can we have a word with you? Can you please tell us how your wife survived?”

“Mr Sterling, can you kindly bring your wife for an interview?"

“Who do you think was behind her accident five years ago?”

“The body you buried, do you still believe it belongs to your wife?”

My security team immediately moved in, using their bodies to clear a secure path so I could drive down into the gate, leading to my private underground parking lot.

Twenty minutes later, I was relaxing my aching body into the black leather of my top-floor office. Just then, my secretary walked in with a stack of folders.

“Good morning, Mr Sterling.”

I offered a curt nod, pulling the first file towards me and reviewing the pending projects we have at hand.

“Sir, you have an executive board meeting scheduled for 11:25 AM, followed by an appointment with Mr Brown at 1:05 PM.”

Damn it.

Mr Brown was the sole reason I specifically requested the top architectural firm in New York to send their best asset. I had been thoroughly impressed by the blueprint they had for their other clients. But never in my wildest dream could I have predicted that this routine commercial contract would drag Isabella back to me.

“Okay, you can go.”

Jane exited the room.

I hadn't even been working for an hour when my phone began to vibrate against my desk. I glanced down at the screen, my brows furrowed, wondering who could possibly be calling me.

Was it the boss?

I snatched the phone up, pressing the green button.

"Hello."

I frowned.

Instead of the deep, brutal voice of the boss, a familiar, smooth female voice flowed through the receiver.

I ran through the mental rolodex of names, my irritation spiking when I realised who it was.

“How did you get my number, and why the f**k are you calling me?"

“I went to extreme lengths to get your attention, especially since you refuse to make things simple for me.” She replied, intentionally smoothing her voice.

“State your business.”

There was a brief pause on the line before she spoke. “Is it true?” She asked. “Is that pathetic woman truly alive?”

“Watch your mouth.” I snapped, my grip tightening on the phone. “That woman is my wife, so I suggest you address her with some respect.”

She let out a dry chuckle. “What are you saying, Alex? She is…”

“Mr Sterling," I corrected her harshly. “We're not close enough for you to use my first name. Know your boundaries.”

But somewhere in my heart, I badly wanted Aria to call me that name.

“I'm sorry, Alex, but…"

Beep! Beep! Beep!

I cut her off mid-sentence, slamming my finger on the red button and instantly adding the number to my blocked list.

Dropping the phone face-down, I continued working, going through land documents, departmental documents and surveying documents and signing each of them while tapping on the keyboard to analyse the results on the screen. Before I could even draw a full breath, the phone vibrated again.

Frustration flared within me, thinking it was her calling from another number. I picked the phone up, ready to press the red button when my eyes caught the caller ID.

Grandfather.

I swiped the screen instantly. “Grandpa.”

“I want to see my granddaughter-in-law; bring her over for family dinner," his voice boomed through that receiver.

“Grandpa, we’ve already talked about this,” I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose. “I can't bring her home for now; she doesn't remember anything yet.”

“Then I'm coming over,” he said sharply.

"Grandpa…"

The call ended.

………………..

"Sir",

I lifted my gaze slowly to see faces staring back at me with deep worries.

“Mr Sterling, are you alright?” The head of the Estate Management Department asked, studying my face.

I was currently seated at the head of the executive boardroom, surrounded by my HODs who were supposed to be presenting their weekly analytics. But even from the head of the table. I could hear the hushed whispering among the lower executives, all of them gossiping about Isabella’s sudden return.

Still, my mind was miles away from this corporate strategy. I flipped through the pages of samples submitted by the architectural development team, my eyes scanning them.

I wasn't satisfied with it. Not even close.

“Scrap these designs,” I said coldly, tossing the folder into the centre of the table.

“Get me something with a new vision, or replace your entire creative team with people who possess the actual competence.”

“Mr Sterling, with all due respect, these are the highest-rated designs in the country.” The team leader said, his face paling. “Other international firms are literally dying to purchase these exact samples from our company.”

“Then I highly suggest you and your team should pack your bags and go work for those other companies," I retorted.

The man looked as if he might pass out at any moment. “I… I am sorry, sir. I didn't mean to imply…"

“If the new drafts are not on my desk by 8:00 AM sharp, you are permanently terminated.”

“Y-yes sir.”

The glass doors clicked open, revealing Jane walking into the room looking tense, holding a thick, gold-embossed invitation card.

“I'm incredibly sorry for the disturbance, Mr Sterling. But this is urgent. I needed to remind you about Mr Blake's birthday party tonight.”

“His secretary just arrived at our reception stand to formally finalise the guest list.”

I held the card, my thumb brushing the design of the cover.

I had completely forgotten about it.

The invitation was given to me personally by him, but I wasn't around to receive the invitation, which James did, and attending was vital. I was on the precipice of closing a multi-million-dollar distribution deal with him.

“Right. Inform James about it to get the security details and the cars ready tonight. I'll be there.”

She cleared her throat nervously, her eyes darting towards the twenty people sitting around the table.

“I have a lot to do, Jane. Spit it out already.”

"Mr Blake specifically requested that you bring your wife along, sir.”

The room gasped with excitement and intense murmuring.