Page 29 of The Billionaire's Betrayal
He gave her a soft, almost apologetic smile that made my stomach twist, and Audrey walked out, closing the door behind her.As soon as she was gone, I laid out the situation, and Tristan exploded.
“Are you fucking kidding me, Eva?!Why the hell didn’t you tell me sooner?!”he shouted, furious.
“Don’t talk to me like that!What’s wrong with you?!”I snapped.“It’s not like you were reachable, was it?”I added, my voice sharp.
I glared at him, exasperated by his lack of perspective.
“Satoshi called you.I did too.But apparently, you were too busy to pick up.”
“What exactly are you implying?Spell it out,” he challenged, his jaw clenched.
“If you prefer to ignore your phone to enjoy a cozy lunch with your assistant, don’t turn around and blame me for not keeping you in the loop.
Tristan shot to his feet, his eyes blazing with anger.
“Are you serious right now?Another jealousy fit?!I’m so fucking tired of your accusations!It’s exhausting!You wanted me to be more present at home, I am.You wanted me to let you know if I’d be late, I do.Now what?You want me to fire all the beautiful women I work with just to ease your insecurities?!”
His words were cruel, unfair, and they hit like a slap.My hands trembled, my heart pounded painfully.I wanted to scream at him, to shake him, to make him see what was right in front of him.But something in his gaze—this anger that wasn’t like him—made me swallow my words.
“Tristan… you know that’s not what I want,” I finally said, my voice softer, trying to defuse the situation.“I don’t understand why you’re lashing out at me, Tristan.I’m not the one who caused this cyberattack.I don’t know where all this anger is coming from, but stop.Please.This...this isn’t you.”
He turned away, avoiding my gaze, as if he had no answer to give.Without another word, I turned and walked out of his office,gentlyclosing the door behind me.Every step I took away from him cost me, as if I were leaving behind more than just an argument.Tristan did nothing to stop me, and that silence spoke louder than any words he could have uttered.
17.Lending a hand
TRISTAN
Eva and I were going through a rough patch.The tension between us over Audrey had driven a wedge so deep that we barely spoke anymore.We passed each other in the hallways during the day, and at night, the few words we exchanged felt empty, hollow echoes of what we used to be.Eva’s anger was palpable, but mine was growing too.
Usually, our fights never lasted long.We always found a way back to each other after an honest conversation.But this time was different.We were entrenched in our positions, like two armies locked in a war of attrition.
I had rarely felt this kind of anger before.With each passing day, my frustration built, and I resented Eva for it.
She wanted me to let Audrey go, and that demand infuriated me.How could she ask that of me?She knew how much I relied on a competent assistant.And now, just because she couldn’t control her jealousy, she wanted to take that away from me.
Yes, Audrey was beautiful and desirable.Denying it would have been hypocritical.But that wasn’t what mattered.What truly counted was her incredible efficiency, her almost instinctive ability to anticipate my needs, to handle crises, to support me in every project.Because of her, I could focus on the big picture without getting bogged down in the details, working in an environment where everything just flowed seamlessly.
And Eva wanted to take that from me?
But more than her request, it was her lack of trust that hurt the most.The constant doubts, the barely veiled suspicions… How could you claim to love someone while doubting them at every turn?
Yes, I had turned off my phone during lunch the day of the cyberattack, but with the workload piling up, the pressure had become suffocating.I needed a break, just for an hour.The fact that Audrey had offered to join me didn’t bother me.She was good company, and I didn’t understand why Eva was making such a big deal out of it.Her attitude was becoming oppressive, and I had to admit it, she was starting to weigh on me.
At night, I locked myself in my office, avoiding the inevitable confrontations that always ended the same way: heavy silences, swallowed resentment, half-spoken reproaches.Every attempt at conversation only made things worse.The more we tried to talk, the more our disagreements piled up.
To escape it all, I drowned myself in work.As if professional success could compensate for the failure of my personal life.As if my colleagues’ praise could somehow heal the wounds in my heart.
My mother’s bitter words echoed in my mind, relentless.
Do all couples end up like this?Worn down by unspoken words, misunderstandings, the small wounds that accumulate day after day?Even the strongest love,was it doomed to crumble under the weight of frustration and doubt until all that remained was an unbridgeable chasm?
After the cyberattack, every day was a battle to regain lost trust.Meetings turned into trials where we had to constantly prove our competence.I could see the doubt in our partners’ eyes, the new wariness that tainted every exchange.The questions were sharper, the expectations higher.We spent hours presenting reports and charts, demonstrating that our systems were now impenetrable.
The board demanded answers, increasing the number of security audits.Every morning brought new interrogations about our protocols.Every night, I was still at the office, buried in endless reports.The days stretched on, blending into each other.I only went home in the middle of the night, exhausted but unable to slow down.
Thankfully, the cybersecurity team had worked miracles.Their quick response had contained the damage, protecting our most critical data.We had avoided the worst, but the threat still loomed.One wrong move, and all our rebuilding efforts would collapse like a house of cards.
In this chaos, Audrey had become my anchor.She anticipated every need, handled crises with unnerving calm, found solutions where I saw only dead ends.When everything felt overwhelming, she appeared with a cup of coffee and a reassuring smile, ready to weather the storm by my side.Her presence had become more than support, it was essential.
