Ruined By My Brother's Best Friend (by Silverwriter) novel Chapter 26

Powerful Man

Humour danced in his eyes as I quickly pulled my hand away and took a staggering step back. I lost my footing again, bu Sierra darted forward and steadied me.

My cheeks burned as I finally took in my surroundings.

Christian was standing beside Alvise, and behind them were several unfamiliar men dressed sharply in black/suits and dark sunglasses, along with some of our company’s directors. “I’m so sorry!” I blurted out.

Christian immediately turned to Alvise, anxiety evident on his face. “My sincere apologies, Mr. Valerio. Miss Whitmore didn’t mean to run into you.

I blinked in confusion. So many things weren’t adding up.

Why was Christian addressing Alvise by his surname? And why was he apologising on my behalf as though I’d committed some unforgivable offence?

Alvise’s eyes never left mine. “Where’s the conference room?“. His calm voice cut through the silence.

Sierra and I took that as our cue to leave. We quickly stepped aside and were about to walk away when Alvise spoke again. “And aren’t you two members of the staff?” he asked.

We froze. Exchanging confused glances, we slowly turned back around. I cleared my throat and looked to Christian for help. but he looked furious, as though we’d interrupted something important. I swallowed. “Yes… we are.”

Alvise turned to Christian. “Aren’t staff members supposed to welcome investors? Or do you conduct business differently here?”

Christian shook his head immediately. “Definitely not.” He shot us a pointed look. “I’m trying to understand why they’re not in the conference room as well.”

Sierra didn’t hesitate. “Leah said retained interns weren’t allowed.”

I shifted uncomfortably at her bluntness and the heavy silence that followed. I cleared my throat. “We’ll just get going. Thank you. I turned around and started walking again, this time much faster.

“I want everyone present.” Alvise’s firm voice echoed down the hallway.

I stopped in my tracks and took a deep breath. I was so done with today. At this point, I genuinely wanted to scream at the top of my lungs. With Sierra trailing behind me, I headed straight for the conference room, walking past Alvise and what appeared to be his entourage. Someone needed to explain what the hell was going on before I completely lost it.

Leah stood the moment she saw us. “I thought I made myself clear.”

We ignored her entirely and returned to our seats. Not even a second later, Christian walked in alongside Alvise and the sharply dressed men.

Christian made his way to the head of the table where he usually sat, but instead, he gestured for Alvise to take the seat. He then asked Leah to vacate the chair beside him before taking it himself.

“What do you want me to do?” I shot back, playfully slapping her arm.

“I mean…” She pointed at me. “You like a freaking billionaire. Do I really need to say more?”

I let out a sarcastic laugh. “Need I remind you that the billionaire is engaged?”

Sierra rolled her eyes. “You could always become the mistress if it gets me out of this nine–to–five.”

I reached over, grabbed a handful of her hair, and ruffled it playfully. “Why don’t you be the mistress instead?” I teased.

She shuddered dramatically. “Have you seen how cold that man is? Did you see the poker face he had in there? Sure, he’s hot physically, but if I tried seducing him, he’d give me one glare and I’d freeze to death.”

I couldn’t help smiling as I settled into my chair. She was trying to lighten the mood, and it was working… Just a little, but my thoughts kept drifting back to Alvise. It was one thing knowing he was somewhere in London while I did my best to keep my distance, but it was something else entirely knowing I’d probably be seeing him far more often from now on.

The office door suddenly swung open, pulling me from my thoughts. I looked up as one of my co–workers walked straight I over to my desk.

“Miss Whitmore,” she said, “Mr. Valerio has sent for you.”