Just My Hockey Roommate’s Filthy Desires by Esther Pen novel Chapter 256

Chapter 256

Chapter 256

ARIA’S POV

…

Anthony paused, his large hand still hovering just inches above his earpiece. His sharp, dark eyes scan face, searching for any sign of hesitation or fear.

The protective aura radiating from him was palpable, a silent reminder that if I gave the word, julian’s wouldn’t even make it past the elevator bank.

“Are you absolutely sure about this, Miss Aria?” Anthony asked, his voice dropping into a low, cautious “The man is desperate. Desperate people do unpredictable things, and I don’t care who his last name is only priority is keeping you breathing.”

I took a slow, deep breath, letting the residual warmth of the coffee cup seep into my palms. I could fee invisible weight of Brandon’s past as the phantom don hovering over this entire building, over the city i but right now, I needed to stand on my own two feet.

“I’m sure, Anthony,” I said, my nod firm and unwavering. “Let him come in. But stay close.”

“Right behind you,” Anthony murmured, stepping back to flank the left side of my desk, his posture shift into a deceptively relaxed state that I knew could turn lethal in a fraction of a second.

Chloe nodded quickly, her fingers flying across her tablet as she backed out of the room. A minute later, t heavy double doors of my office opened.

once more.

Older Mr. Vance walked in.

Even with his multi-million dollar corporate empire

actively burning to the ground on the global stock exchange, the man practically dripped with generationa wealth and unyielding aristocratic pride.

He was dressed in a pristine, charcoal-grey bespoke suit, his silver hair perfectly coiffed, and his posture rigidly upright.

But if you looked closely enough, you could see the cracks. The slight tremor in his right hand, the subtle gray tint of exhaustion beneath his skin, and the wild, frantic glint in his eyes told a completely different

story.

He didn’t look at Anthony. He kept his arrogant gaze locked entirely on me as he marched toward my desk.

“Aria,” Mr. Vance began, his voice carrying the deep, booming authority of a man who was used to dictates rather than discussions.

He didn’t wait for an invitation to sit. He simply pulled out the leather chair across from me and sat down. crossing one leg over the other. “I’ll cut straight to the chase. We need to talk about what is happening on the marketing floor right now. And more importantly, we need to talk about your boyfriend.”

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11:48 Tue, Jul 28

Chapter 256

I leaned back in my chair, folding my hands over my lap, refusing to give him the satisfaction of see flinch. “If you’re here to talk about the stock market, Mr. Vance, you’ve come to the wrong building. Enterprises’ financial problems have nothing to do with my company.”

A tight, bitter smile touched the older man’s lips, though it didn’t reach his eyes. His pride was an arm refused to shed, even while bleeding out.

“Don’t play naive with me, young lady. We both know exactly what is happening. An hour ago, a mass institutional short-squeeze and a series of highly classified regulatory leaks hit our primary holdings. execution. And the man holding the axe is Victor Sterling-a man who answers directly to Brandon.”

He leaned forward, slamming his palm lightly against the wood of my desk, his aristocratic veneer slip just enough to reveal the desperate predator underneath.

“Brandon is systematically dismantling my family’s legacy, Aria. Everything I built, everything my fath built, is being erased because of a personal dispute. I know Julian crossed a line yesterday. I know my s acted like an absolute fool in this very office, and believe me, he has been severely disciplined for it. Bu corporate annihilation of this scale? Over a domestic disagreement? It’s absurd. It’s bad business.”

I felt a cold, sharp laugh bubble up in my throat, but I kept it locked behind my teeth. He called it a don disagreement. He called it bad business.

He had no idea that he wasn’t dealing with a businessman. He was dealing with a man who ruled the dar man who viewed a threat to his family as a declaration of total war.

“Mr. Vance,” I said, my voice deadpan, chillingly calm. “Your son didn’t just ‘cross a line.’ He put his hands me. He threatened my daughter.”

Mr. Vance waved his hand dismissively, his deep-seated arrogance blinding him to the sheer danger he w “And as I said, Julian is being handled. He has been stripped of his executive privileges. But Brandon need call off his dogs. I don’t care how much investment capital Brandon controls, he cannot simply erase the Vance name from this city without a fight.”

He paused, adjusting the cuffs of his tailored shirt, staring at me as if expecting me to pick up the phone ar beg Brandon for mercy on his behalf.

“I came here because I assumed you were a reasonable woman, Aria. You run a major corporation. You understand numbers. Tell your man to back down. Give me Victor Sterling’s terms, and we can settle this quietly, out of the public eye. Name your price for the damages Julian caused.”

Beside me, I heard the subtle rustle of Anthony’s jacket as his muscles tensed. The room felt suddenly freezing. I looked at the older man sitting across from me, still wrapped tightly in his pride, completely unaware that the fire burning his house down wasn’t something money could put out.

I looked at the man sitting across from me, his tailored suit immaculate, his silver hair unruffled, yet completely hollow inside. The sheer entitlement dripping from his words made my stomach turn.

He truly believed everything in this world could be resolved with a bank transfer and a signed non-disclosure

agreement.

A sharp, dangerous clarity settled over me. I remembered the custody threats, the legal notices, and the shadow that older Mr. Vance had cast over my life for months.

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Chapter 256

He had backed Julian’s relentless pursuit to take Amelia away from me, using their family name like a w to try and rip my daughter from my arms.

Now, the tables had turned. And he didn’t even realize how weak his hand was. “Name my price?” I repe my voice dropping to a deceptively soft whisper. I leaned forward, resting my forearms on the desk, loc my eyes onto his.

“Tell me, Mr. Vance… why on earth would I lift a single finger to talk to Brandon for you? Why would I h save your precious legacy when you and your son have spent the last few months actively trying to tear life apart? You tried to take Amelia from me.”

Mr. Vance’s jaw tightened, a muscle twitching beneath his smooth skin. He looked at me, realizing for the time that his corporate stature held absolutely no power in this room.

“That was…. a misunderstanding, Aria,” he said, his voice dropping into a tight, urgent hiss as he threw his hands up in a rare display of fractured composure.

“A legal strategy driven by Julian’s stubbornness. If Brandon calls off Victor Sterling, I give you my word, Vance Enterprises will drop all claims. We will stay away from Amelia. You will have full, uncontested cust She will effectively cease to exist to our family.”

The casual way he offered up his own granddaughter as a bargaining chip was sick. It was disgusting. But I kept my face an unreadable mask, playing the corporate chess game he thought he was winning.

“Is that so?” I murmured, tilting my head. “Let me ask you a question, Mr. Vance. Just so I’m completely cle on where we stand. Is your company really worth that much to you? Is Vance Holdings worth more than yo own flesh and blood? More than Amelia?”

Mr. Vance didn’t even blink. The aristocratic pride in his eyes hardened into something entirely transaction devoid of a single ounce of human warmth.

“Yes,” he said bluntly, his voice cutting through the quiet office like ice. “Frankly, Aria, I don’t care about Amelia. She is a bastard child born from a messy situation, and clearly, she has brought nothing but ruin to my doorstep since Julian became obsessed with her.”

He adjusted his lapels, leaning back in the leather chair as if he had just delivered a flawless closing argumen

“Julian is still young. His athletic career and his executive future can be rebuilt once this storm passes. He wil find another woman from a proper family. In fact, he will always have another child, a legitimate heir, with Leonie. The girl is already staying at our penthouse, and her family’s political connections are far more valuable to the Vance legacy than a child from you could ever be. So yes. The company is worth everything Now, call Brandon.”

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