Too Late To Love Me I Already Left With His Twins (Lydia and Dave) novel Chapter 312

Lydia pov

I was halfway through an email when my phone rang.

Not just any email either. One of those emails I enjoyed writing because it gave me an excuse to throw a complicated mess at my team and watch them figure out how badly they could panic before remembering they were professionals.

The subject line currently read:

URGENT: STREAMER MONEY-LAUNDERING CASE — INTERNAL RESPONSE DRILL

The case itself had been trending since that morning.

Kairo Vee, one of the biggest gaming and lifestyle streamers in the country, had found himself at the center of a financial investigation after the Financial Crimes Unit reportedly froze several accounts linked to a digital marketing company he owned. According to reports, the company had been receiving unusually large transfers from a network of offshore betting platforms and cryptocurrency wallets.

The problem was that Kairo had spent the last three years building himself as the harmless internet millionaire.

He streamed video games. He reviewed gadgets. He did charity livestreams. He had millions of followers, brand deals with major tech companies, a clothing line, a podcast, and enough internet influence to make one badly worded tweet capable of becoming a national conversation before breakfast.

Then somebody noticed that a company supposedly created for “digital advertising and influencer management” had been receiving millions in transfers that didn’t quite match its declared business activities.

And once people started digging, they found more.

Three shell companies registered within a six-month period.

Two directors who appeared to share the same residential address.

Cryptocurrency wallets allegedly connected to the same network of betting platforms under investigation in another jurisdiction.

And, most importantly, a pattern of transfers that seemed to move money through multiple accounts before eventually landing in companies associated with Kairo.

None of it had been proven against him yet.

That part mattered.

A lot.

The internet, unfortunately, had never cared much for words like allegedly, investigation, or pending.

By lunchtime, half of social media had already convicted him, the other half had declared him innocent, and the remaining portion was making memes.

My job wasn’t to decide whether he had done it.

My job was to prepare my team for what would happen if a client, partner, brand ambassador, or even an employee suddenly found themselves standing in the middle of something like that.

I had already written:

“I want everyone to approach this as a crisis-management simulation. Do not assume guilt, and do not assume innocence. Build your recommendations around verified facts, legal constraints, stakeholder mapping, reputation risk, media response, and scenario planning.”

I paused, reread it, then added another line.

“For the interns specifically, I want three possible public-response strategies and the potential risks associated with each. Think beyond the first statement. What happens six hours after the statement? Twenty-four hours? What happens if additional documents leak? What happens if a former employee speaks publicly?”

That was the part I enjoyed.

The interns always thought PR was about writing pretty statements.

It wasn’t.

Anyone could write, We take these allegations seriously.

The real work began after you pressed send.

What did you say when a journalist called?

What did you tell employees?

What did you tell investors?

What happened when someone leaked a screenshot?

How did you respond when the public decided your carefully worded statement meant something completely different?

How did you prevent the crisis from becoming the entire identity of the brand?

I was about to add a final note when my phone rang.

Without looking at the screen properly, I accepted the call automatically.

A decision I immediately regretted.

A loud, high-pitched shriek exploded through my speaker.

“HI BABESSSSS!”

I pulled the phone slightly away from my ear.

I already knew.

“Urghh, Anna.”

She laughed.

I leaned back in my chair, allowing my head to fall against the backrest.

“Anna, you are definitely the weapon fashioned against me.”

“Excuse me?”

“What?”

“I heard that.”

“You were supposed to.”

She laughed again.

“What’s up?”

“First of all—”

“Wait.”

I sat up.

“Btw, I saw your brand beauty products on the city’s billboard.”

There was a dramatic silence.

Then she squealed.

“You saw it?”

“Of course I saw it. It’s practically impossible to miss.”

Her beauty brand had been expanding rapidly, and apparently Anna had decided that every available billboard in the city was an opportunity to remind the public that she existed.

“Girl, I need some beauty blenders.”

“Here we go.”

“And lip gloss.”

“Mhm.”

“And I think concealers too.”

“Of course.”

“I’ve almost exhausted the ones I got.”

Anna made an exaggerated sound of disapproval.

“Urgh. I am not your personal shopper, ma’am.”

I smiled.

“I know.”

“I didn’t call you for business.”

“You sound so much like my assistant.”

“Your assistant probably has to deal with you every day.”

“Exactly. Poor woman.”

“Poor woman indeed.”

I glanced at my unfinished email.

“Anyway, what were you calling me about?”

“Before we talk about your beauty needs,” Anna said, suddenly sounding much more serious, “I wanted to tell you that we just launched some beauty products for kids.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“Beauty products for kids?”

“Yes! We have lip gloss and talc powder. They’re eco-friendly, cruelty-free, and formulated specifically with kids in mind.”

I smiled.

“That’s actually cute.”

“I know!”

“And you remembered Ava?”

“Obviously. I got one for her.”

“My baby girl has been eyeing my beauty products lately,” I admitted. “Especially the ones on the top shelf. She pretends she isn’t interested, but I’ve caught her looking at them more than once.”

“Exactly! So now she has her own.”

“That’s nice.”

“Yayyy!”

I could practically hear her smiling.

Then there was a pause.

A very suspicious pause.

I narrowed my eyes even though she couldn’t see me.

“Why did you go quiet?”

“Oops.”

I sighed.

“What?”

“I almost forgot why I called you.”

I closed my laptop halfway.

“Anna.”

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