Page 49 of Is This Real or Just Pretend?

Alex awoke early the next morning admittedly refreshed, but with a stubborn pit in her stomach. She could barely stomach more than a cup of coffee for breakfast until Aunt Winifred practically force-fed her a bun.

“No one ever triumphed on an empty stomach,” she said with a firm nod.

Alex was in no mood to argue and soon enough Father hustled her out the door. They barely said anything on the ride to the office, both too lost in their own thoughts.

The mood in the office was just as grim and almost violently subdued compared to the day before. It reminded Alex of a funeral, though she supposed it was, in a way.

The death of the company.

“Come this way,” her father prompted, interrupting her morose thoughts. He guided her to the conference room. “Chin up,” he murmured as they turned the corner.

Alex did as he commanded while fighting against the instinct to shrink back.

A dozen men milled around the hallway waiting for the proceedings to begin, and she recognized many members of the board.

Men she had known since she was a child, and who had known her father even longer.

For some of them had been on the board of this company since Grandfather had been in charge.

For the first time, she was struck by the duplicitousness of it all.

The sheer greed. When would they ever have enough?

But then a gentleman stepped aside and she saw Benjamin in full view.

Before Alex even knew what she was doing, she charged straight up to him, her father heedlessly calling for her to stop. For his part, Benjamin made no attempt to hide. He simply met her gaze.

“Why are you doing this?” she hissed.

“I told you,” he said calmly, glancing at something behind her. Probably her father frothing at the mouth. “If I couldn’t invest in the supper club, I would be forced to take drastic action. And here we are.”

“You’ve been planning this for weeks ,” she shot back, but Benjamin only shrugged.

“I needed a back-up plan. And when Mr. Tompkins mentioned his seat on the board, I made a suggestion. The rest was remarkably easy.” Then he narrowed his eyes. “I truly had no idea your father was hiding your contributions.”

“I’m not hiding ,” she protested.

“Nevertheless, he did you a disservice,” Benjamin continued. “But not to worry. I am not so closed-minded as the rest of these fellows. When everything settles, I would be happy to take you on as an advisor.”

Alex scoffed and stepped back in disgust. “I would never work for you.”

But Benjamin only shrugged. “Suit yourself. I suppose you’ll have more time to practice your needlepoint and watercolors.

All those feminine pursuits you always turned up your nose at.

Make yourself a good little wife for Lucien Taylor.

Ah, there he is now.” Alex turned and her gaze immediately tangled with Lucien’s.

They stared at each other for the space of one heartbeat, until her father took his arm and led him inside the conference room.

“This won’t work, by the way,” Benjamin said by his ear. “But it’s a good effort. Very romantic.”

Alex cast him her most withering look. “As if you would know anything about that.”

She then stormed off, his dry laugh following in her wake.

When Alex entered the conference room, Lucien was already seated at the table.

Her father waved from the other side of the room where they were to sit and watch the proceedings.

As Alex passed, Lucien shot her a glance and gave her a small smile.

Alex did her best to return it, but she was so nervous that it must have looked more like a grimace.

“They’re going to start by summarizing Chisolm’s accusations,” her father murmured by her ear as she sat next to him.

“Then Lucien will speak on my behalf. I’ve already denied everything, but I thought this could help sell the idea that he is to be my successor, and he’s far more popular than I am at the moment. ”

Alex gave a single nod. It was a sound strategy. “Fine.”

“And then there will be a vote.”

She balked. “That’s it ?”

Her father nodded. The fight seemed to have left him, and Alex hated seeing him so resigned. “That’s it.”

This was appalling.

She looked over at the conference table as the stragglers were all taking their seats and her eye caught Benjamin’s. He had the nerve to actually wink at her before sitting down.

Alex growled under her breath.

“I am very tempted to give that boy a good thrashing,” her father said.

“He isn’t worth it,” Alex replied and crossed her arms.

As the meeting began, her gaze kept wandering to Lucien.

He was staring at the speech her father had given him, and speaking to himself, likely memorizing it.

Alex found herself riveted to the movements of his mouth as he formed the words with his full lips.

A shiver went down her back as her unruly mind recalled the feel of those very lips on her mouth, her neck, her—

“Here we are,” her father muttered and Alex blinked.

It was time for Lucien to speak. She shifted in her chair and forced her focus to return to the meeting.

He tapped the papers on the tabletop and cleared his throat.

“I have been asked here today to speak on my experience working with Atkinson Enterprises, both as a client and as a future member of the family.” Alex didn’t think she had imagined his hesitation on that last part and her cheeks heated in mortification.

“I am supposed to assure you all that I plan to take on a very involved role in the company upon my wedding to Miss Atkinson and help usher Atkinson Enterprises into a bold new era. That you are all in good hands thanks to my stewardship. And that the lies spread by Mr. Benjamin Chisolm about Miss Atkinson’s outsized role in the company are merely a shameful attempt to frighten shareholders and gain control of the board himself.

” Lucien then paused. Alex looked up to find his gaze fixed firmly upon her.

“But I am not going to do that.”

“I didn’t write that,” her father grumbled, sounding more confused than concerned, and the entire room broke out into murmurs.

“Instead, I am going to tell you why Atkinson Enterprises does not need me.”

“I didn’t write that , either,” he said more urgently now.

But as he began to rise from his seat, Alex placed a hand on his arm. “Wait.”

He shot her a frustrated look but obeyed and sank back into the chair. Meanwhile, Potts had appeared and was handing out papers to everyone in the room. When he reached Alex, he gave her an encouraging smile and for the first time in twenty-four hours, Alex felt something close to relief.

Beside her, Father snatched the paper from Potts. “What is this supposed to be?”

But her secretary merely tilted his head. “You’ll see.”

Alex scanned the paper and frowned. It was a list of businesses they had invested in.

How on earth was this supposed to help? She looked back to Lucien but he was watching the room, waiting until everyone had a paper.

Then he continued: “Before you is a list of every business Miss Atkinson single-handedly championed, often clashing with her father and even more than a few of you. Yet these companies have all proved to not only be highly profitable but in a few cases revolutionary in their industries. At the bottom of the page is an estimate of the total profits generated by Atkinson Enterprises’ founding shares in these companies.

As you can see, that is a substantial total and it is all due to Miss Atkinson’s visionary thinking. ”

Alex was frozen in shock. She could do nothing, say nothing, only watch Lucien as he defended her so beautifully. So publicly . He turned to her then, as if he had heard her thoughts.

“If my presence in this company is truly the only thing keeping Mr. Atkinson in charge, then I will stay. Happily, I might add. But know this: I will consult with Miss Atkinson on every single decision, every single move I make. The truth is you don’t need me.

Because you have her. And she is by far the most valuable person here. Thank you.”

All hell then broke loose as the board members began lobbing furious accusations at each other—and especially at Benjamin, while Lucien just sat back in his chair, taking it all in.

“By God, I think he’s done it,” her father whispered and reached for her hand, but Alex needed to get out of there.

She quickly stood and slipped from the room without looking at anyone. She needed to go to her office. There she could think. There she could—

“Alex. Wait!”

She stopped in her tracks and turned to face Lucien. He too stopped a couple feet before her. His handsome face full of concern.

“I… I just wanted to make sure you’re all right,” he said awkwardly.

Adorably.

“I’m fine. I wanted some air.”

His gaze stayed fixed on her face. “I’m sure. I had no idea you would be at the meeting.”

Alex startled a laugh. “Oh, I’m sorry.”

“No, that isn’t—” He took a step toward her, then appeared to remember himself. “I’m glad you were. I meant every single word. It is the very least of what you deserve.”

Alex had to look down. His earnest expression was too much for her battered heart. “Why did you come?”

She forced the question past her lips. She had been wondering since yesterday. What had her father possibly offered to make him return here? To defend her, of all people?

He was quiet for a long moment, then he stepped closer until the toes of his shoes came into view. “Because you needed help. And I wanted to pay you back.”

She looked up sharply. “For what?”

“Cooking school. My father told me,” he added at her confused look.

“Oh,” she said. “That wasn’t necessary.”

Lucien let out a surprised laugh. “Alex, you changed my life. Why did you not tell me?”

Alex frowned. Wasn’t it obvious? “I didn’t want you to feel beholden to the family.”

Or me.

“So instead you let me think you were some heartless ice queen all these years?”