The Paper Wife’s Empire novel Chapter 351

Brianna was suffocated by a crushing wave of humiliation, so intense it eclipsed even her fear. She wished the ground would swallow her whole, and she dug her nails into her thighs, trying to convince herself this was all a nightmare. But with every passing second, the reality of her situation cut deeper.

She couldn’t tear her eyes away from Ramona, even though she desperately wanted to look anywhere else. Ramona hadn’t changed much physically, but the chasm between them was now as vast as the sky. With a flick of a switch, Ramona had become a dazzling, untouchable heiress, living in a world Brianna could never hope to reach, no matter how hard she tried.

Brianna’s mind flashed back to a sunny afternoon in college, the day the three of their fates became entangled. Ramona had been simple and clean-cut back then, her beautiful features still tinged with a youthful innocence, not the stunning, soul-stirring presence she was now. Brianna had even pitied her, thinking what a shame it was that such a beauty was a penniless orphan.

When Jotham brought Ramona into their lives, he had claimed to be impressed by her hard work and talent. Brianna had reassured herself that Ramona was just a bit clever but ultimately dull and naive, incapable of truly capturing a man’s heart.

Now, it had all come back to haunt her. From the very beginning, Brianna had been competing with Ramona in a battle that only she was fighting, and she had lost spectacularly.

Finally, Ramona looked at her. Her gaze was cool and detached, her expression so peaceful it was unsettling. “Brianna, we meet again. I never thought I’d see you at the Covington Group.”

Brianna flinched. She tried to respond, to sound composed, but as she gripped the edge of the table, she couldn’t find the words. She had been completely unprepared for this. In front of the people from Gallop Inc. and the Covington Group, she felt like a clown, her pride shattered into a million pieces.

But a sliver of rationality forced her to calm down. She looked again at the USB drive in Ramona’s hand. Impossible. Maybe… maybe they were just bluffing! That had to be it. Jotham would never give that drive back to Ramona; he needed Brianna now. If Ramona really had proof, Yancey would have presented it already instead of just trying to scare her. And Wisteria’s dramatic act was just too obvious.

“Ramona, I know… we have some personal history, but…” Brianna mustered her courage, but her voice faltered. She took a deep breath. “But you’re the president of the Covington Group now. You should be able to separate business from personal matters, don’t you think?”

Yancey, feeling she had gone too far, shot Wisteria a look and gently tapped her fidgeting leg under the table. Like a child being scolded by a parent, Wisteria reluctantly pursed her lips.

“Brianna, I’ll ask you one last time. For the Gallop Inc. project, you plagiarized my research data, correct?” Ramona’s gaze drifted, her fingers tapping the USB drive on the table. The room was silent.

Brianna scoffed. The fact that Ramona was still giving her a “chance” only confirmed her suspicion that this was all a bluff. “Ramona, if you’re accusing me of plagiarism, can you show me any proof? If you can’t, I may have to consider suing the Covington Group for defamation and slander.”

“Yancey.”