An Understated Dominance (Maria Vittori) novel Chapter 13

The hall where the event was held had become lively. On the stage, a group of dancers dressed in vintage clothing danced to classical music. Every facial expression and move was full of charm and grace, leaving a lingering impression in the audience’s mind. 

Below the stage sat a crowd of well-dressed celebrities. While some clinked their glasses and chatted, others quietly enjoyed the performance. Dustin had found an empty seat and sat down, sipping on a glass of juice as he watched the show.

“Yo, Rhys! Didn’t think you would actually sneak in here!”

Suddenly, a discordant voice disrupted Dustin’s moment of peace. Glancing over at the source, Dusin spotted Chris and Dahlia together with the secretary.

“Hmph, what an unlucky day. Why are you everywhere?” Lyra huffed in annoyance.

Dahlia didn’t say a word. She threw a cold glance at Dustin and went to take a seat in the front row.

“Hey, the charity auction is starting soon. Can you even afford to participate? Why are you sitting here?” Chris jeered.

“Who says I can’t sit here because I can’t afford it?” retorted Dustin.

“That’s the rule! How can a sucker like you sit with us?” Chris said with a contemptuous look.

“Are you deaf? Get up now!” Lyra kicked the chair Dustin was sitting in.

“What happens if I don’t?” Dustin looked up at him.

“I’ll call the guards to kick you out!” threatened Lyra.

“Go ahead and try,” Dustin responded with an unbothered expression.

“Fine, you asked for it! Don’t blame me when you get humiliated!” Just as Lyra wanted to raise her hand and call for the guards, Dahlia stopped her.

“Cut it out. Let him be.”

“But…” Lyra frowned.

“Mind your own business,” Dahlia simply replied.

“Hmph, consider yourself lucky.”

Lyra glared at Dustin and left it at that. At this moment, her phone rang. After answering the call, her expression froze and the arrogance on her face was quickly replaced with horror.

“What’s wrong?” Dahlia asked upon sensing something amiss.

“Ms. Nicholson… it’s… it’s bad!” Lyra blurted nervously. “I just received a tip-off that the Harmon family wants to remove the Jackson Group from the candidate list!”

“What?” Dahlia’s face fell at the news. “Are you sure the tip is reliable?”

“It should be. My friend overheard it at work!”

“How could this happen?” Dahlia’s expression was awful. After all, she’d expended great effort in getting the Jackson Group on the candidate list. Not only were large sums of money involved but she even owed countless favors over this.

She thought that since they passed the preliminary screening and got on the list, she could effortlessly secure the position of the Harmon family’s partner as long as she met with the Steel Lady beforehand.

Who knew that they would get removed at the very last minute? It was so sudden that Dahlia couldn’t comprehend what had happened.

“Ms. Nicholson, what do we do now? If we make it on the candidate list, all of our hard work will be in vain!” Lyra lamented unhappily.