Flash Marriage To The Dangerous Billionaire - Chapter 21: Chapter 21

Scott looked puzzled for a moment and then turned sharply to Nelson. She said to Hallie, "Is it this brat? Did he threaten you and tell you not to go public?"
"No, Grandpa," Hallie replied, shaking her head.
'It has nothing to do with Nelson. I never planned to live my whole life tied to someone like him. If I quit my job, how am I supposed to support myself in six months?' she thought with a pang of anxiety.
"I really enjoy my job," she said aloud, her tone calm but sincere. "Even if I'm married, I want to keep working. But if my identity becomes public, it might bring unnecessary complications to my career.
"I think what matters most in a relationship is mutual understanding and respect. So, Grandpa, would it be alright if we held off on the press conference?"
Scott was clearly moved after hearing those words. Then, his face darkened as he shot another glare at Nelson. "Did you hear that? A girl like Hallie—good-hearted, thoughtful—you couldn't find another like her. You'd better start treating her right. You got that?"
"Got it," Nelson muttered. He didn't even look at Hallie when he said it.
After breakfast, Scott watched Hallie with gentle eyes as she climbed into Nelson's car.
"You can drop me off at the bus stop up ahead," Hallie said. "No need to attract attention."
Nelson's car drew too much attention, and it would be the first thing people saw if it stopped near the hospital.
"Gladly," Nelson replied, his deep voice cool and tinged with simmering irritation.
The moment Hallie stepped out, Nelson slammed on the gas, tires screeching slightly as the car sped off. It kicked up a cloud of dust that left Hallie coughing into her sleeve.
'Seriously? What the hell did he have for breakfast, gunpowder?' Hawllie thought.
When Hallie arrived at the hospital, a dozen of her colleagues quickly gathered around, anxious to know how she was holding up.
As for the whole situation, Hallie only confided in Clarissa and specifically asked her to keep it a secret. To the others, she simply said she was lucky enough to run into a friend at the right time.
After all, she and Nelson had an agreement. If she said too much, he'd find a way to use it against her.
"Hallie, we're so sorry," Raymond said, guilt etched deep into his face. "It was our negligence that put you in danger."
Hallie shook her head. "I was too trusting. It's a lesson for me."
Just then, Carla Harvey from the department next door came striding in—clearly having heard about the incident and eager to dig.
"By the way, Hallie, what's your friend's background?" Carla asked, eyes gleaming with curiosity. "Those guys who attacked you were all tied to government officials. For someone to rescue you that easily, they've gotta be from a powerful family, right? A man or a woman?"
"Why do you care?" Clarissa interjected, stepping between them. "Even if it were a man, and he went to all that trouble to save Hallie, clearly he's more than just friends."
"I'm just asking," Carla huffed, her lips pouting. "I care about Hallie, okay? What's with your attitude?"
Clarissa looked Carla up and down, her arms crossed. "Care about her? Where was all that concern when you dumped the hardest cases on her just because your uncle's the deputy director?"
Hallie reached out and tugged Clarissa's sleeve gently, signaling her to stop. After all, they still had to work with these people. There was no point burning bridges over petty drama.
To be fair, Hallie thought she owed Carla something. If Carla hadn't constantly pushed the toughest patients onto her, Hallie wouldn't have earned such a strong reputation among colleagues and patients alike.
"Dr. Harvey, there's no need for concern," Hallie said, her voice calm, polite, but distant. "If you have any cases you need me to take, just tell me. If not, I have some files to catch up on, so I'll excuse myself."
There was a firmness to her tone—a quiet, unspoken boundary that couldn't be crossed.
Carla blinked, her expression stiffening at the subtle rebuff. "Alright then. I won't keep you."
After that, she walked out of the office, clearly annoyed.
"Come on. Just a washed-up rich girl—what's so special about her anyway?" Carla muttered bitterly on her way back to her own office.
"A pretty face is everything she has. Bet the guy who likes her is some sleazy sugar daddy with more money than sense. She acts like she's above everyone. Please, what a joke."
Soon, Hallie finished organizing her case files and was preparing to check in on her scheduled patients when a nurse from the front desk came looking for her, saying a man wanted to see her now.
Assuming it was a patient or family member, Hallie headed to the entrance in a hurry. But the moment she saw the man's face, her steps slowed, and her expression went cold.
"Hallie, it's been a while. Are you doing alright these days?" Tucker stood there with a falsely tender smile plastered across his face.
His eyes were full of forced concern and exaggerated warmth—as if he were a father who'd finally reunited with his long-lost daughter after years of searching.
Hallie didn't even look directly at him. Standing on the stairs, she responded, "Could you not disgust me in public?"
The words were like a pin bursting the overblown balloon of Tucker's self-staged sentiment.
"You ungrateful girl," Tucker hissed through clenched teeth. "I came all the way here just to check on you, brought you lunch too, and this is how you treat your own father?"
Hallie retorted with a cold face, "You can keep your lunch. I can take care of myself."
Ever since Hallie's grandfather passed and left her with 51% of Levine Group's shares—along with all personal property and assets—Hallie had quietly taken control. The rest of the shares were scattered among various investors.
Tucker, despite assuming the role of CEO, held zero stake himself. Without shares, he was a powerless figurehead—none of the board actually listened to him.
All he really inherited was over 3 million dollars in the bank. Sure, he had a few side businesses of his own, but they barely scraped by.
'With how he and that woman spend money like water, I give them three more weeks before they drain every cent from the accounts,' Hallie thought. 'It has only been three weeks, and Tucker was already here causing a scene.'
Realizing that emotional guilt wasn't working, Tucker hesitated. Suddenly, his eyes darted, calculating. He then changed tactics.
"You don't have to care about me," he said, trying to sound reasonable. "But you can't just ignore the fate of the Levine family, can you?
"Your grandfather gave you those shares, so you'd protect the company. Don't you think you owe it to him to take responsibility for what he built?"
'Oh, so now it's about protecting the family legacy?' Hallie thought, her lips pressing into a tight line. 'And then what? So I can just sit back and watch you collude with those boardroom snakes and skim funds like you did when Grandpa was alive?'
When Phillip was still running things, Tucker and a few senior execs had constantly ganged up on him, pressuring him into silence so they could do whatever they wanted with company money.
But now that Hallie held the majority shares, no major financial decision could go through without her signature. As long as she stayed away, they couldn't funnel a single cent out of the company.
It wasn't a long-term strategy, but she had her own plans in motion.
Hallie snapped, "You don't get to talk to me about Grandpa. You're not worried about Levine Group. You're worried about your kickbacks drying up. Tucker, your days of freeloading are over."