Flash Marriage To The Dangerous Billionaire - Chapter 45: Chapter 45

As soon as the key decision-makers left, all eyes in the room instantly turned to Hallie.
Most of the people in the room were eyeing Hallie with open hostility.
Only Lewis and Dustin exchanged a wordless, reassuring glance with Hallie.
A weight like a ton of bricks settled on Hallie's heart.
Hallie turned to Nelson and said, "Mr. Blair, could we speak privately?"
Nelson's face remained impassive, his deep voice cool and detached. "Fine."
Dustin felt an inexplicable worry rise in her heart and, without thinking, reached out to grab Hallie's arm.
Dustin said to Hallie, "Don't be intimidated by him. Dr. Garcia and I will be right outside waiting for you."
Hallie couldn't help but chuckle at how Dustin was making her out to be too timid.
Hallie reassured Dustin with a smile, "Relax. Even if Nelson were a hundred times scarier than the rumors say, he wouldn't dare lay a finger on me. Besides, this is strictly business."
"OK." Dustin nodded, but the worry on his face didn't ease in the slightest.
Dustin couldn't fathom under what circumstances Hallie had come to know Nelson, the heir to the top-tier Blair Group.
Although Hallie kept saying they were just friends, Dustin couldn't shake the feeling that Hallie was being evasive about her relationship with Nelson.
If Nelson hadn't come to see Paul today, proposed a partnership, and revealed his identity, Dustin probably would've just written him off as another trust fund kid with some money.
'Something about this just doesn't sit right with me,' Dustin thought to himself.
Hallie led Nelson into the room.
Earlier in the public area, Hallie had deliberately maintained a cold toward Nelson, speaking to him as if he were a complete stranger—she couldn't risk anyone suspecting there was more between them.
Alone at last, they dropped all pretense.
What was more, ever since Hallie learned Nelson wanted to acquire Berry Bay, she'd been burning with anger.
Hallie glared at Nelson and demanded, "Did you come all this way and do all this just to get the distribution rights for herbs here?"
The fury on Hallie's face ignited Nelson's long-suppressed rage.
Nelson's piercing gaze bore straight into her, radiating an almost suffocating pressure.
Nelson asked, "So you're saying I shouldn't expect any returns at all? Did you really take me to some saint running a charity?"
Each of Nelson's words stabbed into Hallie's heart like ice picks.
Her fury didn't stem from Nelson failing to be the selfless saint she'd envisioned; what truly infuriated her was his ruthless exploitation of that debt of gratitude as leverage against her.
Indeed, in business, Nelson was always this ruthless and domineering. By hook or by crook, as long as he could get what he wanted, he never cared about the means.
'The agreement is lying on the table outside right now. If I couldn't get Nelson to change his mind today, all my mother's lifelong dedication to this place and my own carefully laid plans would vanish into thin air,' thought Hallie.
A suffocating sense of urgency tightened around Hallie, every nerve on edge.
Proud as she was and loath to beg for favors, Hallie had no choice but to soften her tone at this moment.
She spoke up, "Nelson, you absolutely can't do this. You can't just turn Berry Bay into another pawn in your corporate empire.
"You have no idea about the rules in the pharmaceutical industry—it's nothing like your other businesses. I definitely won't let it become..."
Nelson shot her a cold look. "Why should I take orders from you?"
Nelson's face turned utterly frigid as he cut her off without a shred of mercy.
He added, "You know the rules here all too well. For over a decade, you've been buying these herbs at rock-bottom prices. Ask yourself honestly—is this place really worth so little?
"Yes, I'm leveraging a debt of gratitude, but I've invested 15 million dollars here. There's more to come, and it's transforming their lives overnight. So tell me, between the two of us, who's truly heartless?"
Nelson's words were like shards of ice, each one stabbing into Hallie's heart with needle-like precision.
"You've got it all wrong." Hallie exploded, her voice raw with indignation.
She roared, her chest constricted with the bitter sting of wrongful accusation.
But Hallie was never one to show vulnerability. Instead, she pinned Nelson with a defiant, unyielding glare as she argued her case.
Hallie snapped, "You only see superficial profits, but you have no clue about the complex web of relationships behind these herbs."
Nelson's tone dripped with sarcasm. "When it comes to business, you're way out of your league. Don't even try to discuss these matters with me."
Living under the same roof, Hallie and Nelson inevitably had their share of clashes. But most of their conflicts ended simply because Hallie couldn't be bothered to argue, or Nelson deemed it beneath him to waste his time on her.
Never before had they both been this furious, with neither willing to back down.
In Nelson's view, Hallie's emotional outburst was simply because he'd hit a raw nerve.
He thought, 'She just wants me to back off so she can keep buying herbs here for pennies and line her pockets.
'I've invested so much time and 15 million dollars here—why the hell should I give up just because she isn't happy about it?'
Nelson said coldly, "We're all just businessmen at heart. Don't think that being a doctor lets you shed that skin. Selflessness? You're the last person qualified to claim that word."
Nelson had a particular genius for delivering wounding remarks.
The crowd waited anxiously outside, afraid that Hallie might ruin the deal.
Finally, the door opened, revealing Hallie stepping out first. An involuntary wave of discontented murmurs and disappointed sighs rippled through the onlookers.
Hallie had schooled her expression into perfect neutrality; her eyes were calm, her face unreadable.
The crowd instantly deflated, thinking Hallie had gained the upper hand.
It wasn't until Nelson emerged, strode straight to the contract on the table, and signed his name decisively that a quiet cheer spread through the crowd.
An assistant standing nearby presented the contract to Lewis.
Lewis glanced at the expectant crowd around him, then at Hallie, who was standing silently to one side. In the end, without a word, he signed his name.
As Hallie saw the contract, a bitter pang surged through her chest, flooding her entire body until even the tip of her nose tingled with the urge to cry.
Afraid of losing her composure, Hallie could only mutter, "Excuse me" to Lewis before hurrying toward the main entrance.
Nelson glanced down, unhurriedly flipping through the contract in his hands with complete indifference.
Dustin called after Hallie, but when she didn't stop, he shot Nelson a withering look before hurrying after her.
After signing his name, Lewis had no heart to linger. With his hands clasped behind his back, he quietly made his exit.
Only a few scions of pharmaceutical dynasties stepped forward to flatter Nelson, but upon seeing his icy demeanor, they soon slunk away.
Peterson said, "When it comes to sealing deals, no one's as swift and ruthless as you."