The Seat They Never Saved And The Offer I Finally Took Chapter 09

The Seat They Never Saved And The Offer I Finally Took Chapter 09

Chloe completely lost it.

Nathan had exposed her publicly, Mason had blocked her, and she faced a huge demand for

repayment.

Everyone she’d relied on was gone. Nobody wanted anything to do with her.

The next afternoon, I stepped out of the office building, and Chloe burst out of the landscaped

strip beside it.

Her hair was a mess, her eyes wild. Holding something I couldn’t identify, she charged straight

at me.

“Claire Bennett, you bitch! You ruined everything!”

She screamed, her face twisted with

rage.

The bodyguard behind me reacted instantly. He kicked her to the ground and pinned her there.

I stood on the steps, looking down at Chloe as she struggled.

Gone was the delicate woman who’d seemed to need everyone’s protection. Now she looked ugly and wretched.

“Call the police,” I told Lauren calmly.

The police arrived quickly, took Chloe into custody, and escorted her to a patrol car.

While I was giving my statement at the station, Nathan and Mason arrived after hearing what had happened.

At the sight of Chloe in handcuffs, they showed none of their old tenderness or protectiveness. Only undisguised revulsion.

“Claire, are you okay? Did she hurt you?”

Nathan hurried to my side, anxiously trying to see if I was hurt.

Mason was just as eager to speak up.

“Claire, don’t worry. I won’t let her get away with this. I’ll hire the best lawyer and make sure she spends the rest of her life in there!’

They fell over each other to prove their loyalty.

They wanted to crush Chloe and wipe away their own guilt.

I sat there looking at the two men I’d once treasured. Now they only seemed pathetic.

“Nathan Reed. Mason Carter.”

I said their names with scorn.

“Watching you rush to pretend you had nothing to do with her makes me sick.”

Both men froze.

“You were the ones who chose to put her on a pedestal. You decided she was too fragile to take care of herself. You decided I was supposed to give in to her.”

I stood and straightened the hem of my coat.

“So now you’ve found out she’s a terrible person, everything’s her fault? You get to act innocent and say she fooled you?”

I walked up to them, my eyes cold.

“You weren’t fooled. You liked having two women fighting over you, making you feel adored.”

“You picked up trash and put it on a pedestal. Now it stinks, so you want to throw it away and come to me for a gold star?”

Nathan’s face turned dark red. Mason lowered his head in shame.

I tore away every last excuse they hid behind.

I turned and walked out of the police station.

Nathan’s anguished cry followed me out.

“That blood on your hands is yours to clean up,” I said with a cold laugh.

The acquisition finally closed at a punishingly low price.

Nathan’s hand shook as he signed the contract.

Northstar Technologies survived, but all effective control passed to our group.

Nathan went from a celebrated founder to an employee who could be replaced at any time.

Mason’s company was so tightly tied to Northstar that it, too, suffered heavy losses in the fallout. Its cash flow dried up completely.

They paid a very real price for their arrogance and favoritism.

They’d lost not only love but the careers they took such pride in.

The day after the contract was signed, I boarded a flight back to London.

The team in the States could clean up the mess.

I hadn’t expected to find Nathan in the airport lounge.

His coat was wrinkled, his jaw unshaven, his eyes bloodshot. He’d clearly been waiting a long

time.

When he saw me approach, he rose awkwardly.

“Claire…” His voice trembled around my name.

I stopped and motioned for Lauren and the bodyguards to wait nearby.

“Is there something else, Mr. Reed?” My tone was strictly business.

Nathan pulled a velvet box from his pocket, his eyes

red.

He opened it. Inside was the diamond ring I’d left on the coffee table three

This time, he’d had it resized and added more expensive accent diamonds.

years earlier.

“Claire, I know I was wrong. So terribly wrong.”

He looked at me, fat tears dropping onto the carpet.

“I’ll give you my company. My life, too. Can you give me one more chance? Just one.”

He choked on a sob, almost collapsing onto all fours at my feet.

I looked at him quietly, and at the ring that was three years too late.

There wasn’t even a flicker of satisfaction at getting even.

I no longer cared enough to hate him.

“Nathan Reed.” I looked at him calmly.

“I was at the airport that night three years ago, too. I waited for you all night. You only brought back four blankets.”

Nathan froze, his face going white.

“The Claire Bennett who dragged five suitcases through the rain? Who sat alone getting an IV with a fever of 102.2? You killed her yourself.”

I gave a small smile, my gaze clear, free of the old pain.

“The woman standing in front of you now is Flora Bennett.”

I left the box in his hand and walked past him toward security.

Over the speakers, passengers were called to board the London flight.

Sunlight poured through the airport’s enormous glass dome, falling warm and bright across

Nathan sank to the floor, defeated. The diamond ring slipped from his hand and rolled away

with a sharp clink.

I didn’t look back.

My world was so much bigger now.

“Goodbye forever, Nathan.” I smiled, turned, and walked toward security.