HIS FAKE BRIDE, HIS REAL OBSESSION

Evelyn’s Point of View The boardroom was filled with the aroma of costly cologne and newly brewed coffee. I gripped the edge of the mahogany table, my nails piercing the glossy finish as I addressed the board members as the company's corporate strategist. Their eyes moved back and forth between the glowing presentation screen and me with expressions of doubts and cautious interest. “AsterCorp is in a fragile state.” I said, my voice clear but firm. “The recent complaints of lack of quality among others have shaken investors’ confidence, but that doesn’t mean we can’t recover. My proposal focuses on restructuring to ensure long-term stability rather than short-term panic cuts.” “The numbers speak for themselves.” I said as I clicked to the next slide, displaying a graph with projected financial growth. “If we refocus our assets and negotiate key partnerships, we can prevent the stock from dipping further and—” The boardroom doors burst open with a sharp thud, drawing everyone’s attention including mine, to it. My eyebrows twitched as I saw a man walk inside with carefully measured footsteps that made him seem as though he was walking into a place that he owned. The soft rustle of his perfectly cut charcoal suit that looked custom-made filled the silence as he made his way towards where I stood at the front of the room. Chairs creaked as board members sat up straighter, the room suddenly heavier with an unspoken shift. I did a double take once he was next to me and now staring at me. He was a bit taller than a few inches above me, mostly six feet or more with the fabric of his suit hugging his broad shoulders so effortlessly. His white shirt and black tie were in sharp contrast to his smooth, olive-colored skin. Then, there were his eyes. Icy-blue, sharp, and unreadable, yet familiar. Too familiar, but I couldn't place my finger on when I had ever seen them. His gaze drifted from mine, towards the board members as he turned to face them and I let out a small gasp as though I had been holding my breath the entire time. Why on earth had I been holding my breath? My eyes widened slightly, darting left and right before coming to rest again on the stranger. His eyes roved over the room without so much as a twitch of feeling passing over his face. I could just hear the air conditioning humming, which indicated that it was still working, but the temperature of the room made me doubt this. A noise in the room distracted me and I saw Mr. Langston, one of the older members of the board, grab his phone. One of my eyebrows twitched badly, wanting to shoot up at his action. I couldn’t believe the same man who had yelled earlier about a phone buzzing in the meeting, was doing the same and no one was saying a word. “I apologize for the interruption.” Mr. Langston spoke up once his call ended, though his tone suggested he wasn’t sorry at all. “But we need to address a major update before proceeding.” A frown pulled at my brow and I highly doubted that at this point it could even be hidden. Langston cleared his throat once again and adjusted his tie. “As of this morning, Mr. Donovan has officially resigned as CEO of AsterCorp.” The words dropped like a bomb and a murmur spread across the table. The older executives exchanged uneasy glances, while the younger members leaned forward, waiting for the inevitable storm. I stiffened and the murmurs of how he just resigned echoed through the room. Langston let out a breath, massaging the bridge of his nose as if the gravity of the situation actually hurt. "It wasn't an easy choice, but considering the company's current situation, we have to move quickly.” He informed everyone. “Fast? Mr. Langston, the investors are already on edge because of the complaints of lack of quality, and now we’re throwing a leadership crisis into the mix?” I shook my head in disapproval. “I would say this is a reckless move.” “Yes, Ms. Evelyn Carter, we hear you.” Langston didn’t flinch. “Which is exactly why a crisis manager has been brought in to take immediate control.” He gestured toward the man who had barged in and was standing right next to me, a fact I may have forgotten just a few seconds ago. “Meet Damian Wolfe.” Damian Wolfe. The name meant nothing to me, but I glanced at him, and unease churned in my belly. He had not spoken a word, yet the entire room had reordered itself around him. He moved forward, slipping his hands into his pockets, and exuding effortless control. “I’m not here for introductions.” He said, his voice deep, smooth, and completely devoid of warmth. “I’m here to fix this mess.” A ripple of yet another wave of tension passed through the board. My eyes narrowed. “Fix this mess, Mr. Wolfe?” My voice carried a sharp edge. “You just got here. Do you even understand the complexity of our situation?” His gaze flicked to me, but just as quickly, it moved away from me as if ignoring me. I nearly scoffed but caught myself in the nick of time. “I understand one thing, Ms. Carter.” He said flatly. “This company has been mismanaged, and if drastic measures aren’t taken immediately, it will collapse. My plan ensures that doesn’t happen.” I let out a slow breath as my grip tightened around my pen at the undermining tone he was using on me. “And what, exactly, does your plan involve? May we know what that is?” He moved toward the head of the table, tapping a few keys on the laptop connected to the projector. A new slide replaced mine, one I had never seen before. “Cost-cutting.” He said simply. “Massive layoffs, and the reduction of unnecessary departments.” The words sent a chill down my spine. I straightened. “You can’t be serious.” His expression remained unchanged. “I don’t deal in hypotheticals, Ms. Carter.” I leaned forward, my hands clawing into the table. "We don't need mass firings, what we need is restructuring, not a slaughterhouse mentality." His eyes met mine, cold and unwavering. "Sentiment doesn't save companies, results do." I inhaled slowly, suppressing the irritation brewing inside me. “You may be the crisis manager, Mr. Wolfe, but you’re not the CEO. You can't make any decisions without consulting with the likes of us who actually know something about AsterCorp." He tilted his head to one side, studying me as if I were an intriguing puzzle. Then a slow, icy smile crept at the corner of his mouth. “There’s no CEO, and you just assume I don’t understand it.” He murmured. “I assume you don’t understand its people or how it should work based on your suggestion.” I gritted my teeth and stressed out my words to show him how serious I was. “That is enough Ms. Carter!” I heard Mr. Langston say. “You’ve done enough.” I threw a glare his way. “Really, sir?” He scoffed and stared at me in surprise. “You…are you glaring at me right now?” Before I could throw a word of agreement at his question, a small scoff from the man beside me caught my attention. I looked back at him staring at me with a brow raised in what I would term amusement. Then, in just a few more seconds, he turned back to the screen. “The decision stands, Ms. Carter.” He said in a tone with finality. “You may now either leave us or return to your seat.” My blood boiled at his words, and I exhaled sharply before pulling out my flashdrive from the laptop with more force than necessary. “I best be on my way, then. Do excuse me.” I said, and left the office. As I walked back to mine, my mind was on only one thing—how to keep this man from ruining the company. As soon as I entered my office, I shut the door behind me, and the stern sound echoed all through. “Whoa, what has got you over the edge?” The voice of my best friend, Mia, drew me out of my head and I saw her sitting on one of the chairs behind my desk. “Mia.” I sighed and walked forward before falling into my seat. “It’s just some guy that barged in, took over, and now thinks he can make decisions without understanding the people who built this company.” I gestured wildly. “Mass layoffs? Just like that? He’s insane.” “Damian Wolfe?” Mia asked. My head snapped towards her direction. “You know him?” “Nope, but we got a tip about him.” Mia tilted her head. “It’s why I’m here.” “A tip?” She nodded. “I did a quick search on him earlier and Eve, this guy is a ghost.” I frowned. “A ghost?” Mia nodded. “There’s barely anything on him. No corporate history, no official records of past companies he’s worked for. It’s like he appeared out of nowhere.” “Is that even possible?” I asked as a frown found its way to my face. “Maybe with a little more deep search, it won’t be impossible, but something doesn’t add up, Eve.” She tapped the desk. “I feel it deep in my bones.” Mia was one with a strong intuition, a trait that helped with her job as a journalist, so her words had to be valid. If something truly was up, I intended to find out what it was.