Secretly living with my boss

Chapter 8: The Board's Verdict

Morning came with no comfort.

No peace.

No clarity.

Just a decision waiting to happen.

I stood in front of the mirror longer than necessary, staring at a version of myself that looked calm on the outside—but felt completely unsettled inside.

Today wasn’t just a workday.

It was a judgment day.

For me.

For Ethan.

For everything we were trying to control… and failing at.

---

When I stepped into the living room, Ethan was already there.

Waiting.

As if he had never gone to sleep at all.

He was dressed sharply, as always, but there was something different in his expression today.

Not softness.

Not weakness.

Focus.

Dangerous focus.

“You’re ready?” he asked.

I hesitated.

“No,” I admitted honestly. “But I’m here.”

That earned the smallest shift in his expression—almost approval.

“Good,” he said.

Just that.

Then he walked past me.

And I followed.

---

The boardroom was colder than I remembered.

Or maybe it was just the atmosphere.

Glass walls. Long table. Eyes that measured everything and forgave nothing.

People stopped talking the moment we entered.

And then I saw her.

Clara.

Sitting at the far end, perfectly composed, lips curved slightly like she had already won.

My stomach tightened.

Of course she would be here.

This wasn’t just an investigation anymore.

It was a performance.

---

“Mr. Blackwood,” one of the board members began. “We appreciate your presence.”

Ethan nodded once. “Let’s proceed.”

Direct.

Unshaken.

As always.

But I stood slightly behind him, feeling every gaze shift toward me.

Whispers had already started.

I could feel it.

Like pressure on my skin.

“Before we begin,” another voice said, “there are concerns regarding internal conduct within your company.”

Ethan didn’t react.

But I did.

Just slightly.

My fingers curled together.

“This involves allegations of inappropriate relationships between management and staff,” the board member continued.

Silence dropped heavily.

My breath caught.

And then—

Clara leaned forward slightly.

“I believe I can clarify,” she said smoothly.

My chest tightened instantly.

Ethan’s jaw moved just slightly.

Not anger.

Control.

Always control.

“Go ahead,” he said.

Clara smiled.

And turned her gaze toward me.

“I have evidence,” she said.

My stomach dropped.

A folder slid onto the table.

Photos.

Printouts.

Screenshots.

My face.

Ethan’s penthouse.

Late hours.

Close proximity.

Everything frozen in time and twisted into suspicion.

My hands went cold.

“This employee,” Clara continued, “has been living with the CEO outside of professional hours.”

A sharp inhale from somewhere in the room.

My heart pounded violently.

I wanted to speak.

But my voice didn’t come.

Because this wasn’t just exposure.

It was execution.

---

“Is this true?” a board member asked.

All eyes turned to Ethan.

Not me.

Him.

Because in this room, I didn’t matter.

Only his answer did.

The silence stretched.

Too long.

My chest tightened painfully.

Ethan exhaled slowly.

Then spoke.

“Yes.”

One word.

Simple.

Final.

The room exploded into whispers immediately.

My breath stopped.

What?

I turned slightly toward him.

Confused.

Shocked.

But he didn’t look at me.

Not yet.

He was still facing the board.

Calm.

Controlled.

Dangerously calm.

“It is true,” he repeated.

Clara’s smile widened slightly.

And for a moment, I felt like I had been pushed off a cliff I didn’t see coming.

---

“But,” Ethan added.

The room went silent again.

Every head turned back toward him.

He finally looked at me.

And something in his eyes shifted.

Just once.

Before he turned back to the board.

“There is context,” he said.

Clara’s smile faltered slightly.

My heart started beating faster.

“What kind of context?” the board asked.

Ethan paused.

Then said the words that changed everything.

“She is not just my employee.”

A pause.

Heavy.

Intentional.

“She is my fiancée.”

The room froze.

Completely.

My entire body went numb.

Fiancée?

I stared at him.

But he didn’t look at me again.

Not yet.

Because he wasn’t asking permission.

He was finalizing a decision.

A strategy.

A move.

And I was the piece he had just placed on the board.

---

Clara’s expression cracked for the first time.

Just slightly.

But I saw it.

Her control slipping.

“That is a serious claim,” one board member said.

“It is not a claim,” Ethan replied. “It is my statement.”

Silence.

Then murmurs.

Then chaos.

I couldn’t hear all of it anymore.

My ears were ringing.

Fiancée.

The word kept repeating in my mind like a warning bell.

This wasn’t what I agreed to.

This wasn’t what I prepared for.

But when I looked at Ethan again…

He finally turned his head slightly toward me.

Just enough for only me to see.

And his expression said one thing clearly.

Trust me.

---

But trust was a dangerous thing.

Especially when everything was already falling apart.

And Clara?

She wasn’t finished.

Not even close.

Because as I stood there in the middle of the boardroom…

I realized something terrifying.

This wasn’t the end of the scandal.

It was the beginning of a war.