Billionaire Lawyer's Secretary - Chapter 89: Chapter 89

Hearing that Victor was here, Elara sighed in relief. "How'd you get out?" she asked.
Ruby explained, "Victor found me. Julian and I had just arrived when we were dragged into a small, dark room, and our phones were taken away."
Elara wiped the tears from the corners of her own eyes. "Thank goodness you're safe. Let's go home."
The three of them stepped off the stage, ready to leave, only to be stopped once again.
Dylan had just finished talking to Joseph and was heading out when he saw the three of them being held up by a bunch of bodyguards. He walked over and asked, "Alex, what's going on? Why are they crying?"
Nancy pointed at the three and snapped, "I demand Alex cut ties with those three over there. We're high society now—don't associate with these country bumpkins anymore."
Hearing this, Dylan glanced at Alex. As a dad, he knew exactly what his son was dealing with.
Back then, Alex had offered to get engaged to Nancy—the youngest Hartley daughter—just to get Dylan out. At first, Dylan was against the engagement. The truth was, their families weren't in the same league, and marrying into the Hartleys wasn't exactly easy.
But Alex was desperate to get his dad out, so even though he had feelings for Elara, he still went ahead and got engaged to Nancy. And now, all the trouble from that decision was finally starting to surface.
But honestly, Dylan figured that cutting ties with them might not be such a bad thing after all. With Nancy's personality, if they stayed involved, she'd just keep coming after the three of them.
Dylan leaned in and whispered so only Alex could hear him, "Alex, you can't have it all. Maybe letting go isn't such a bad thing."
Alex swallowed his frustration and stepped forward. He said to Elara, "Elara, just apologize to Nancy, okay? Let's end this tonight."
"Alex!" Julian and Ruby both exclaimed.
Ruby snapped, "Alex, what the hell does Elara have to apologize for? She hasn't done a thing. You know as well as I do this is all Nancy stirring up drama. We haven't bugged you in ages—how are we the problem here?"
Julian, seething, grabbed Alex by the edge of his coat. "Alex, you really think you're better than us now that you've latched onto the Hartley family? You—"
Knowing Julian was impulsive, Elara quickly pulled him away. Facing Alex, she said firmly, "Alex, we can cut ties if you want, but apologize to Nancy? Not a chance."
Now that Ruby and Julian were out, Elara could finally drop the act.
Nancy waved over two more bodyguards, smirking. "Not gonna apologize? Then you're not leaving my engagement party."
"Nobody stops me from taking them today." Victor's voice cut through the crowd from outside.
Everyone in Veritasiton knew Victor—the Montgomery family's golden boy. As soon as he showed up, the crowd automatically made way for him.
"Ms. Hartley, I'm taking them away today. Do you really want these bodyguards to lay hands on me?" Victor asked.
Nancy backed off instantly, and even the huge bodyguards lost their edge—they stepped aside and let Elara and her friends through.
Elara and her two friends followed Victor out, but they hadn't gone far when someone's voice sounded behind them.
"Hold it right there." Sadie walked out from the crowd in her rose gold evening gown, her voice icy with authority. "Who said you could leave?"
Victor shot back, "Me. Got a problem with that?"
"Victor, you may leave, but Elara stays," Sadie demanded.
Elara felt utterly drained. "I'm just a nobody. Why am I getting this 'special attention' from you, Ms. Hartley?"
"I don't care what went down between you and Nancy," Sadie said flatly. "But now it's time to deal with you and the Hartley Group."
"Me? The Hartley Group? What could I possibly have to do with it?" Elara was confused.
"You and Adrian have been all over the internet lately, messing things up between the Hartleys and the Heatons. You know he's supposed to marry Josie, right?
"But you keep playing things up for your millions of followers, turning your little fling with him into headline drama everywhere. What's your game here—are you trying to break up Adrian and Josie or what?"
Elara never thought the online mess would come back to bite her here. She thought helplessly, 'Unless Adrian's here to clear things up, there's nothing I can say that'll convince them.'
"Ms. Hartley, if two families with generations of friendship can fall out over some online gossip, then maybe that relationship wasn't so strong to begin with, was it?" Elara said.
Seeing how sharp-tongued Elara was, Sadie lost patience. "That's not for you to worry about. The online mess you caused is obvious. The Hartley Group's lawyers will show you exactly how big a deal this is."
"Ms. Hartley, you do realize Adrian's the best lawyer in Veritasiton, right? Do you really think I could pull anything on him if he didn't want it? Maybe this thing between us isn't one-sided.
"And let's be real: if Adrian actually gave a damn about that engagement, would he let all those headlines stay up? Please, with his pull, he could've made them disappear anytime he wanted."
Sadie hadn't expected Elara to be so sharp—or so cool under pressure. She definitely didn't act like just any twenty-two-year-old.
"Elara," Sadie said with a knowing smile, "we're both women here. Surely you don't think I can't see through your little game, right?
"Using charity work as a cover for your own interests? Adrian was only focused on raising funds. As for what you're really after, well, I'll let others be the judge of that."
Elara just shot her a cold smile. "You can always find an excuse when you're looking for someone to blame. So, Ms. Hartley, what's your real game here?"
"Me? I'm only doing what's best for the Hartley family. I don't want to see the Hartleys and Heatons fall out over this," Sadie replied defensively.
"Come on, Ms. Hartley. There's more to this than you're saying, isn't there?" Elara pressed.
Sadie scoffed, "What are you getting at?"
"You don't want Adrian back in the Hartley family, do you? Afraid that if he finds someone he loves, gets married, and produces the Heaton family heir, it'll threaten your position, right?" Elara said.
This was just Elara taking a shot in the dark. 'Who knows if I can really bluff Sadie?' she thought. 'Adrian and Josie had agreed to hold off on marriage until they turned thirty—but maybe love had nothing to do with it.
'The two families were just using this engagement to keep their shaky alliance together. Neither Adrian nor Josie really wanted to get married, which is probably why nothing had moved forward since they got engaged.
'Adrian and Sadie must've made some sort of deal, letting Sadie take charge at the Hartley Group for now. But her position is anything but solid, and all that uncertainty seems to come back to Adrian in the end.'
Sadie forced a smile, a flicker of guilt flashing across her face. Elara caught the look—clearly, she'd guessed right.
Sadie took a step closer, her voice low just for Elara. "I gotta admit, Elara, I seriously underestimated you. But does it really matter? Adrian's had issues with people touching him his whole life. He's not cut out for relationships, let alone starting a family."
Elara picked up on something off in Sadie's words. 'Could it be that it was her who caused him to be like that?' she wondered.
"Sadie... Adrian's condition—was it you?" Elara asked quietly.
Sadie sneered, "Yes, you're clever. But unfortunately for you—"
Elara scoffed, "Unfortunate? Adrian and I slept together—believe that?"
"You actually expect me to buy that? Even when Jenna drugged him last time, nothing happened. So why would I believe it'd be any different with you?"
Elara was stunned. "Jenna drugging him—that was your doing?"
"As long as he's got that issue, my father's not gonna let him back in. You sticking to him doesn't change a thing. He'll never be part of our family again."
Elara shot back, "Are you seriously that clueless? Ever heard of IVF? You don't even need to touch each other for that these days."
"You're right, but will Adrian ever resort to IVF?"
Elara was about to clap back, but Sadie suddenly stepped away, her voice cool as ice. "Elara, one way or another, you're going to settle things with the Hartleys today."
Victor stepped forward, shielding Elara behind him. "Ms. Hartley, Elara is Adrian's woman. You'd do well to watch yourself."
At these words, Joseph's gaze turned towards them.
Sadie scoffed with a low laugh. "Adrian's woman? Victor, you know full well about Adrian's engagement to Josie. Do you really think he'd protect Elara?"
"That's Adrian's business. You're not laying a finger on Elara today." Victor's tone was cold.
"And what if I do?" Sadie shot back.
"Are you trying to make an enemy of Adrian?"
"Do you really think Adrian would go that far for a woman? What, you expect him to turn his back on the Hartley Group for her?"
"I don't know about that. But getting you out of the picture, Ms. Hartley? That'd be a piece of cake."
"A piece of cake? He can't even set foot back in the Hartley family, yet you think he can get me out of the picture?"
Victor smirked. "If you're that sure of yourself, Ms. Hartley, go ahead—give it a shot."
Elara's heart pounded as she listened to their standoff. She tugged at Victor's sleeve from behind and whispered, "Adrian and I have already fallen out. Tone it down, or you'll end up with egg on your face."
Victor chuckled at her words. "Adrian's on his way. Who do you think sent me to get you out?"
"What?" Elara couldn't believe it for a second.
'That guy? I'd be lucky if he didn't kick me when I'm down—let alone come to my rescue,' she thought.
Victor noticed someone familiar walking in and smirked. "Would you look at that—speak of the devil."