Chapter 3
Everyone turned toward the source of the voice and saw that there was suddenly a tall man standing in a shadowy corner of the hall, his presence commanding the room.
His drop-dead gorgeous face was dark with fury.
Everyone was stunned into silence until, after a few seconds, someone finally stammered, "M-Mr. Reed?"
It was like someone dropped a boulder into a silent lake. The whole crowd exploded in shock.
That was Alexander Reed, the legendary head of the Reed family in Lintabruge.
This was the kind of man who could bankrupt dozens of companies with a flick of his wrist. People like us could go our whole lives without ever laying eyes on someone like him.
Everyone looked at each other, stunned, wondering why on earth he was here.
"Alexander, please tell this lady I really didn't mean it," Lucy Reed cried out.
She rushed into his arms as she'd just found her savior, her eyes brimming with aggrieved tears.
"Mr. Reed, this is all just a misunderstanding." Ethan Stone, Marcus's father and a seasoned old fox, was the first to step forward with a flattering smile, trying to shake Alexander's hand.
But Alexander smoothly sidestepped him, his eyes cold and sharp as he locked onto Claire.
"With so many people watching, we really should give Mrs. Stone an explanation. Why don't we just pull up the security footage?" Alexander said.
When Alexander mentioned pulling up the security footage, Claire froze instantly.
She shot Marcus a desperate, pleading look.
"Honey, we don't need to check the security footage, do we? I swear it was just an accident. I bumped into Ms. Reed. I apologize," Claire blurted out.
But it was already too late.
Alexander didn't even give her a chance to explain. He waved his hand, and the security footage appeared on the big screen for everyone to see.
After seeing Marcus getting all chummy with another woman at the party, Claire was burning with anger, but she didn't dare blow up at him.
Instead, she set her sights on Lucy, who was standing alone and looked like she'd be easy to push around.
Claire stormed over and deliberately bumped into her, and after that, everyone already knew how things went down.
With her wrongdoing broadcast for everyone to see, Claire's face flushed bright red.
She kept throwing Marcus pleading glances, hoping he'd bail her out.
But Marcus, the Stone family's illegitimate son, was already struggling to keep his footing. Now, with this mess blowing up, he was the one getting dragged through the mud.
Marcus even wanted to strangle her, let alone defend her.
Alexander finally spoke, "Since the Stone family has a problem with Lucy, we'll be canceling our order for now."
With just a few words, Alexander made all the Stone family's painstaking efforts to secure the Reed family's partnership go up in smoke.
Ethan's eyes rolled back, and he passed out cold right then and there.
The scene turned into utter pandemonium. The Stone family knew all too well what it meant to get on Alexander's bad side.
They scrambled to plead for forgiveness, but Alexander didn't spare them a single glance. He took Lucy by the hand and strode out without looking back.
He suddenly paused as he walked past me.
"You're Sophia?" he asked.
Stunned, I stared at him. "You know me?" I blurted out.
For the first time all day, Alexander actually cracked a smile.
"You really are kind and graceful. Thanks for having Lucy's back today," he said warmly.
Lucy was so grateful that she insisted on getting my contact info. Honestly, having her as a contact could only be a good thing for me.
Even as they were about to leave, Lucy kept thanking me. "Thank you, Sophia. I'll come find you to hang out when I get the chance."
But before she could say more, Alexander whisked her away.
Back in the hall, Marcus practically hauled Claire away, leaving the guests buzzing with gossip as they eagerly dissected everything that had just gone down.
By tomorrow, this juicy scandal would be the talk of the town.
Things were only going to get tougher for Claire, but really, she had no one to blame but herself.