Chapter 13
In the Whitmore Group subsidiary’s conference room, Daniel Reed had been sitting stiffly for two full hours. The cold leather chair dug into his back until it ached, and the glass of water on the table had long since gone cold. To even get this chance to reconnect with the Whitmore Group, he had pulled every string he could–seven or eight layers of connections–only to be left waiting from nine to eleven in the morning. He hadn’t seen so much as a mid–level manager, let alone Henry Collins, the executive in charge. The only thing the secretary had said was a breezy, “The leadership is busy.“” The conference room door wasn’t fully shut, leaving a slim gap.
From down the hall came the sharp click of high heels against the marble floor, approaching steadily.
Daniel’s ears pricked. Thinking the executive had finally arrived, he straightened his collar, sat up tall, and prepared to stand
gap, he caught sight of a familiar figure.”
But through the ow
The woman was dressed in a sharply tailored charcoal–gray skirt suit, her long hair swept into a neat knot at the back of her head, exposing the graceful line of her neck and the refined curve of her profile.
She was speaking in low tones to the person beside her, walking with calm, unhurried steps, radiating a poise and authority he had never seen before–an aura that only came from long holding a position of power.
Daniel’s breath hitched, his heart clenching tight.<
looked like her… too
like her.
The shape of her brows and eyes, the slight crease between her brows when she spoke, even the subtle lift of her chin as she walked–every detail was exactly like Claire Whitmore.
“How is that possible…” he muttered under his breath, his fingers curling involuntarily.
His Claire–who couldn’t even bring herself to buy a decent maternity dress, who took the subway alone for prenatal checkups–how could she possibly appear in the core office wing of a Whitmore subsidiary?!
How could she move through the halls like this, surrounded by deference, as if she were commanding the entire room?” Wasn’t she supposed to be in some cramped apartment, waiting for him to swallow his pride and beg her back?} “Miss Whitmore, this way, please. All the Southeast Asia project files are ready in the conference room.“}
The deferential voice of the subsidiary’s vice president carried down the hall, tinged with obvious flattery.”
Miss Whitmore?
Daniel shot to his feet, striding to the door to push it open wider, but by then the woman had reached the elevators, pressing the button for the upper floors.
As the doors slid open, he caught one last glimpse of her turning her head–her face cool, unfamiliar–before the metallic panels shut and cut her off completely.[
“Mr. Reed, my apologies.”
The secretary stepped inside again, wearing a perfectly polite smile. “Mr. Collins just received notice from headquarters–he’s accompanying executives from the main group on an inspection. Today’s meeting will have to be rescheduled.”
Daniel froze, a faint ringing in his ears.
Executives from the main group?
That “Miss Whitmore” just now?
He shook his head sharply, forcing the absurd thought away.
It had to be a mistake–there were plenty of people in the world who resembled each other.
His Claire was just an ordinary woman with no connections. How could she possibly have anything to do with the Whitmore Group? That old man who ran a corner shop couldn’t have raised a daughter like that.”
It was only the stress making him hallucinate.
“Rescheduled? To when?” Daniel forced his voice into a semblance of calm, though the edge of urgency was still there.\
This Whitmore deal was his only lifeline. He couldn’t afford to let it slip away.”
The secretary gave a vague smile. “I’m not sure yet. Once the executives are less tied up, we’ll be in touch. Why don’t you head home for now?”
The words were polite, but the dismissal in her eyes was impossible to miss.\
As she walked away, Daniel felt an unexplainable irritation rise in his chest.
He dropped back into the cold chair, but the image of that figure from moments ago replayed over and over in his mind- familiar enough to stir something in him, yet distant enough to unsettle him.”
Pulling out his phone, he opened his chat with Claire Whitmore again. The glaring red exclamation mark was still there. Grinding his teeth, he shoved the phone back into his pocket, one thought pulsing in his mind: once he secured the Whitmore
deal, he’d make her regret it. Block him?”
When he rose again, she’d be the one crying to come back.
Meanwhile, in the elevator, Claire accepted the cup of warm water Ethan Cole handed her and took a small sip. “I thought I saw someone watching us in the hallway just now,” she remarked casually.”
Ethan’s gaze flickered, his tone light. “Probably just a subsidiary employee. Don’t think too much about it. Let’s go review the project files.”
He naturally took the folder from her hands, blocking her view of the conference room.”
Some trash simply wasn’t worth her glance.
www.
