New beginning: Billionaire love story (Claire and Alex) novel Chapter 408

Eligos leaned back in his chair, phone in hand, grinning as he gave Cindy the rundown of his latest scheme. “There’s a banquet this Saturday, Cindy. I need you to be there. Think you can manage that?”

Cindy chuckled, tapping her fingers on her knee. “Is that even a question? I’m practically made for banquets.”

“Good. Now, the main objective is simple,” Eligos continued. “Find Claire and get under her skin. If you can, throw in a little hint to make her wonder. I want her to have you on her mind all night.”

Cindy grinned, picturing the chaos she could stir up. “Oh, don’t worry about that. If there’s one thing, I’m great at, it’s living rent-free in someone’s mind.”

“Perfect,” Eligos replied, his tone dripping with satisfaction. “I’ll leave it in your hands then. Just make sure she remembers this banquet, yeah?”

“Consider it done,” Cindy said, a glint of mischief in her eyes as she ended the call. Ideas were already racing through her mind about what she could say or do. She didn’t need specifics—just a bit of improvisation, a few calculated hints, and she’d have Claire fuming in no time.

Across town, Christian strolled into Alexander’s office, pushing the door open without bothering to knock. Alexander glared up at him, eyebrows drawn. “There’s this thing called a door, you know,” he grumbled.

Christian didn’t bat an eye, casually setting a steaming coffee cup on Alexander’s desk. “Thought you could use a little pick-me-up,” he said, ignoring Alexander’s grumbling. “Oh, by the way, did you hear about what Claire did at the Venus AMD press release? Apparently, she saved the day.”

Alexander kept his expression neutral as he picked up the cup, taking a sip. “Mm,” he mumbled, clearly trying to act uninterested.

Christian’s eyes narrowed, not buying it for a second. “You’ve already seen it, haven’t you?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Alexander replied, but his poker face was slipping.

Christian laughed, shaking his head. “Oh, come on. Everyone’s talking about it. Claire went up there and fixed Venus AMD’s little robotic disaster. The guy talks trash about Metacortex, and she still goes up and saves his bacon. Honestly, that’s gutsy.”

Alexander hummed again, clearly irritated but trying to hide it. “Venus isn’t that great of a company anyway,” he muttered.

Christian smirked, satisfied that he’d cracked Alexander’s usual stone-cold exterior. “Anyway, you know the new hotel in Vegas? It’s officially opening December 25, and you’ll need to be there.”

“Vegas, right.” Alexander leaned back in his chair, considering the trip.

Christian raised an eyebrow. “Are you bringing Claire along? She’s part of the team, and she’s been helping with the tech. Seems only fair to invite her.”

Alexander stayed silent, frowning slightly as he mulled it over. Why hadn’t he thought of that? Bringing Claire along could be… interesting. Not to mention, it’d be an opportunity to spend more time with her. He shrugged, keeping his expression as unreadable as possible. “We’ll see,” he said nonchalantly.

Christian chuckled. “Sure, keep playing it cool. Oh, by the way, any luck finding out who the Raven is?”

Alexander sighed, scratching his head. “Honestly, with everything else going on, I haven’t really had the time.”

Christian tilted his head, looking thoughtful. “What about the kid you hired to help with that?”

Alexander shrugged. “Eh, I told him to keep digging, but at this point, who knows? If the Raven wants to stay hidden, she’s doing a fine job of it. I hate secrets, and this one’s getting stale.”

Meanwhile, Claire was paying Adrian a visit at his parents' house. He was sitting by the window in his wheelchair, looking out at the street when Claire walked in. He turned, a big smile lighting up his face.

“Hey! Didn’t expect to see you today,” he said, his eyes brightening.