Betrayed and Dumped She Rose Stronger Than Ever novel Chapter 434

Bruce forced a smile, trying to play along with Hailey’s fake friendliness while feeling the sting of Rebecca’s cold shoulder.

He dropped his gaze. “I’m here to see my father.”

Hailey eyed him from head to toe. “You’re here because you want to talk Father out of working with Sunforge Tech and convince him to use NovaStack Cloud’s software instead, right?”

Rebecca paused, caught off guard. She glanced at Bruce, frowning.

Bruce clenched his jaw. “That’s between my father and me. It’s none of your business.”

Hailey gave a short laugh. “How is it none of my business? I’m leading this project. Of course it matters to me. Let me give you some advice, don’t even bother trying. No matter what Father says, I’m moving this project forward. Bruce, you’re almost thirty. Can you stop acting like a kid who goes running to a parent every time things don’t go his way? If I were you, I’d spend my energy on making my own company better, not on trying to pull strings and cut corners.”

Getting scolded like that in public made Bruce’s face darken even more. He felt like he was about to explode.

But this was Lamont Inc., with almost a thousand people watching. He couldn’t afford to lose his cool here.

He balled his fists, swallowed his anger, took a slow breath, and forced a polite smile. “Thanks for the advice. I’ll go see Father now. We can catch up another time.”

Hailey had zero interest in chatting with him.

She shot him a quick look, then turned to Rebecca. “Ms. Harper, let me walk you out.”

When they reached the entrance on the first floor, Rebecca said quietly. “Ms. Lamont, I’m not in charge at my company anymore. I...”

Word about the Duncan family had already spread through their circles, and Hailey had heard plenty of rumors.

She looked at Rebecca with a little sympathy. “You’re smart and you’ve seen up close how crazy these big families can get. Just a heads up, Brett coming back probably means trouble. I’m pretty sure the Duncan family is headed for a nasty power struggle. Keep your eyes open, and if it gets ugly, don’t stick around.”

Hector’s brows drew together and his eyes were sharp.

Bruce realized right away that he’d slipped up. He straightened up and lowered his head. “Mr. Lamont.”

Only then did Hector’s expression soften a little. He set his reading glasses aside and stood up slowly.

They moved to the sitting area, taking seats on opposite sofas.

Bruce couldn’t hold it in any longer. “Dad, is Lamont Inc. really going to work with Sunforge Tech? You know NovaStack Cloud’s software is more complete, more mature, and we have a better position in the industry. Why would you pass on us for Sunforge Tech? And you promised me that if Lamont Inc. ever needed software, you’d consider NovaStack Cloud first.”

Defiance was written all over his face.

Hector saw it clearly. He narrowed his eyes. “What are you really trying to say? Just spit it out.”