The Billionaire's Intern (Maya Thompson) novel Chapter 513

For the next several minutes, Nicholas found himself the target of relentless teasing from nearly everyone at the table.

To his credit, he attempted to defend himself.

To everyone's amusement, he failed miserably.

By the time the laughter finally died down, the topic gradually shifted to more serious matters.

The conversation soon returned to Bill Franklin and everything that had happened earlier at the company.

Damien kept his explanation brief. He informed Charles and Dominic that the matter had already been handled before turning his attention to his father.

"I ordered a thorough investigation and a full department clean-up. HR is already working on it. I'll leave the rest for you to handle, Dad."

Dominic nodded.

"Don't worry about it, son. Just focus on your trip. I'll handle things here."

After a brief pause, he glanced toward Nicholas.

"What about that woman?"

Nicholas immediately knew who he was referring to.

"I heard she caused quite a scene earlier," Dominic continued. "Will she be a problem?"

Nicholas shook his head.

"I don't think so. I made myself very clear earlier, Uncle Dom."

His expression turned serious.

"I highly doubt there'll be a repeat of what happened today."

Dominic studied him for a moment before nodding.

"Good."

The discussion continued for several more minutes as they talked about the aftermath of the incident and the changes that still needed to be made before their departure.

At Damien's request, Monroe, Hudson, and Cruz were eventually called in to join the discussion.

Since the three of them would be playing an important role during the trip, several additional arrangements had to be made.

Once the three entered the dining hall, Damien briefly made the introductions.

"These are Hudson and Cruz," he said. "Harper sent them." The two men nodded respectfully toward everyone at the table.

Maya smiled.

"We already met earlier."

Her expression brightened slightly as she remembered something.

"Harper called a little while ago as well. She said everything is ready on their end."

A small laugh escaped her.

"Apparently, Hiro bought Jaime some computer equipment."

Nicholas blinked.

"Computer equipment?"

Maya nodded.

"I'm not entirely sure what it was. Something about programming, processors, and performance. It was

way over my head, but Jaime was so excited he spent nearly an hour talking about it."

She shook her head helplessly.

"He even went to bed early because he wanted tomorrow to come faster."

That earned a few chuckles around the table.

"He is such a tech nerd, just like your father," Dominic said as he looked toward Maya.

"Back in college, most guys our age were interested in sports, sex, and alcohol. But Julian?" He shook his head. "Tech stuff was his porn."

Smack.

Before anyone could react, Charles raised his cane and lightly smacked his son on the arm.

"You are such a brat."

"Ouch! Father!" Dominic immediately looked at him while rubbing the spot where he had been struck." What was that for?!"

"Now the truth comes out, huh?" Charles scoffed. "No wonder your grades in college were never any good. Instead of studying, all you ever thought about were sports, girls, and drinking."

Dominic looked thoroughly offended.

"That is not true."

Charles pointed a finger at him.

"Don't deny it! You were always getting into trouble. It was only because your wife gave you an ultimatum that you finally got your act together." He shook his head.

"I knew it. I should not have listened to your mother and sent you to boot camp instead."

"That's a gross exaggeration, Father," Dominic argued defensively. "And why would you hit me with a cane? I'm not fifteen anymore."

"Then stop acting like one," Charles said with finality.

That earned another round of laughter from everyone around the table.

Even Maya couldn't help but laugh at the exchange.

Meanwhile, Dominic continued rubbing his arm and muttered something under his breath about elderly abuse.

A moment later, Monroe's phone vibrated.

"I'll come with you."

Maya smiled and shook her head.

"You don't have to. You're in the middle of something."

Her gaze shifted toward the others gathered around the table.

"Just finish your discussion. I'll wait for you upstairs."

Damien glanced around the table before speaking.

"I think we're done here."

Everyone looked at him.

"It's late. Everyone's tired, and everything is already in place."

Charles immediately nodded in agreement.

"And I am well past my bedtime. Your grandmother is going to give me an earful tomorrow for staying up this late."

Nicholas raised a hand.

"I agree. Today was exhausting, and tomorrow is going to be even worse."

He drained the remaining contents of his glass before rising from his seat.

"So I'm heading out first."

With that, the meeting unofficially came to an end. Everyone began standing, gathering their things, and preparing to leave.

Damien and Maya rose from their seats as well.

However, just as they were about to leave the dining hall, the sound of heels clicking against the floor echoed through the room.

The movement around the table gradually came to a halt.

Everyone instinctively turned toward the entrance.

A moment later, Dahlia came into view.

The entire room fell silent.

Damien instinctively checked the time.

It was already well past eleven o'clock.

Seeing Dahlia return home at that hour wasn't unusual.

However, there was something about her expression that immediately felt off.

More specifically, the way she seemed to be deliberately avoiding both his gaze and Maya's.