Wild Billionaire Romance - Chapter 66: Chapter 66

MEREDITH
Spring was unpredictable in the Northeast.
Always had been.
The trip to Manhattan to meet Josef Aziz in a boardroom in the imposing building that was Volkov Towers had been long.
Morristown, New Jersey, was not terribly far, but traffic sucked.
The room itself was comfortable enough. Masculine furniture made of dark stained wood, wrought iron, and leather with neutral beige walls that were softened somehow by the lighting comprised the interior.
There’d been tall, fresh floral arrangements in the hallway. The scent they gave off was light and pleasant. But there were no flowers or plants inside the room. No sign of life at all.
The temperature had to be set at seventy degrees. Maybe slightly higher. But the hum of the vent told me they were filtering the air, which made me relax.
I hated the idea of breathing stale air.
Still, I was glad I’d decided against wearing a bulky sweater over my outfit. The dress was the most formal thing I had back in my Jersey City apartment.
My current wardrobe consisted of mostly jeans and cotton shirts on my off days, and plain blouses and slacks bought on sale at Marshall’s or TJ Maxx, or at a consignment shop.
God, I loved those.
It had been a long time since I could afford anything really worthy of Volkov Towers. Longer still since I’d bought anything not red tagged for clearance.
But I knew quality and I could bargain hunt with the best of them. When you had curves like I did, cheaply made clothes were easy to spot. They hung wrong and brought attention to problem areas like my thick waist and soft belly.
Josef wouldn’t know that, though. He didn’t know anything about me.
But that didn’t matter. I wasn’t there for me.
I was still having a difficult time accepting this was all really happening. That I was sitting there. At a conference table. With him.
Josef Aziz. Blast from my past. Taker of my virginity. Breaker of my heart. Reminder of times I’d much rather forget.
Suddenly, Pat Benatar’s Heartbreaker played in my head at full volume.
Once upon a time, Josef Aziz destroyed me.
But I was still standing.
Different. Changed. But still here.
He probably thought I was the same vapid girl with too much money, and not enough scruples to know when a man was toying with her.
But I was not that teenaged girl anymore. No longer bright-eyed and naïve.
The world was a rough place.
Cruel at times. Brilliant at others.
But there was one constant truth I’d learned over the past fifteen years.
No one left the table without paying their bill.
I’d seen that very thing on a sign in a restaurant in Naples, Italy.
It was a shitty metaphor for life, and my translation was probably bad, but the meaning still held.
Fifteen years ago, I thought Josef had left my table without paying the bill. But time catches up with everyone.
Judging from the hard glint in his once whiskey warm irises, I’d have to say he paid for something, alright.
I hardened my heart against the sudden concern that welled inside of me. He didn’t deserve my compassion. And I couldn’t afford to feel it.
Not there. Not when he was about to takeover Gray Corps and send thousands of people home without jobs by the end of the business day.
“So, let’s begin. Did your father discuss the terms of the loan with you? Do you understand what is at stake?” Josef asked.
“Does it matter? We can’t pay it back. I checked with his accountants this morning.”
“Then Sigma International will seize control of all the assets, properties, and holdings of Gray Corps, under Volkov Industries, starting when the clock strikes twelve. You best prepare yourself, Miss Gray,” Josef said coolly.
I glanced at the clock. It was already ten AM. Anger filled me.
How could he be so damn uncaring?
“Prepare? What about the employees? We have thousands of people working for us! You can’t just⁠—”
My chest heaved, I could hardly breathe. I was so mad. I was damn near spitting.
“All employee contracts will be terminated within the first twenty-four hours of the takeover. Those were the terms of the loan. Your father should have read them more carefully,” he said.
So much time had passed, but this was the moment I realized I had no idea who Josef was anymore.
That realization hurt.
“What happened to you, Josef?”
His dark eyes flashed, and I knew I’d made a mistake, referencing our turbulent past.
But I couldn’t help it.
The man I knew and fell in love with could never just hurt thousands of people with no sign of conscience.
“Of all people, you are asking me that?”
Like it was preposterous. Like I was the one who’d left him standing, waiting for hours in the dark.
“Look, I only became aware of this situation last night, if you could just give me some time⁠—”
“There is no time, Meredith. Your father⁠—”
“Stepfather,” I corrected him.
“Stepfather? Since when?”
Josef’s silence had me meeting his gaze boldly. Seemed like Mr. Know-It-All didn’t know everything.
“Since always. I thought you knew,” I replied and shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. Whatever our past, the fact is Franklin’s situation is precarious. His immediate future is uncertain. To answer your question, I learned of all this just last night. Franklin and I have been estranged for years. He sent for me after a long day of work, so I am sorry if I am not up to speed, but he barely told me about this loan, asking for my help, before he had a heart attack,” I said, shouting the last.
Pressure. So much pressure, and all of it sitting on my chest.
When I thought about all the employees. Fired with no notice. Fuck, there had to be another way!
“Are you trying to tell me you are not involved with Gray Corp? Your name is on the employee list,” Josef said, and I could tell he did not believe me.
I gritted my teeth.
Of course, my name was there. Franklin never took it off. He just kept paying me a check every week, depositing it into my account.
To date, I had over a million dollars in untouched money sitting in the bank.
Well, mostly untouched.
Occasionally, I withdrew funds to use in my line of work, but that was my business.
I owed neither Franklin nor Josef any explanation.
“That’s correct. He’s had me on payroll for years. I was not aware of him taking a loan. Last night was the first time I’d seen him in almost fifteen years. He contacted me, claiming it was a life or death situation. Shortly after I arrived, he had a heart attack. That’s all I know. But you can’t just put all those people out of work!”
Josef showed no reaction, and I had no idea if he believed me.
“In his absence, you have power of attorney?” Josef asked.
“According to what the lawyers told me, yes. I do.”
“And his condition?”
“It’s volatile. The doctors have assured me they would notify me if there was a change.”
For the good of my own soul, I hoped for the best. Franklin Gray was not a good man. But I was a good woman. And I was working on forgiving him before it was too late.
“If you aren’t involved in the business, why are you here now? Why do you even care, Meredith?”
I paused.
It was true, I had no love for my stepfather, though Josef apparently was unaware of that.
I’d already come to the conclusion that along with years of poor habits, the notice Franklin had received from the bank calling in his loan had proven too much for his stony heart. I was already at his home when it just gave out on him.
So yeah, I’d made calls to the lawyers and to Volkov Industries. Of course, I’d dialed 911 first and waited till after the subsequent trip to the hospital to contact everyone.
Franklin had needed emergency surgery, but the doctors had given me no sign one way or another if he would survive.
Guilt, shame, and regret threatened to strangle me.
Whatever it was I felt over the past, I could not help but shoulder some of the blame for the strained relationship between my stepfather and me.
I didn’t owe him anything, but I had the dire urge to make this right. Gray Corps employed thousands of people, and from what I’d read, Volkov Industries had a ruthless reputation for gutting businesses they took over.
What would happen to all those people?
Damn my stepfather for putting me in this situation. And damn Josef for being involved.
Fuck. Why, Franklin? Why did you have to do this to me?
“I want you to tell me what happened step by step,” Josef said, breaking the silence.
I didn’t see any other option. So, I started telling him.
“Franklin sent a private investigator to my apartment asking me to come to his office last night⁠—”
“He sent a strange man?” Josef asked, jaw clenched so tight it was a wonder the vein at his temple didn’t pop right out of his skin.
“Well, no,” I replied, suddenly wary. “I mean, I’d met him before. He was the detective who found me when I came back to the states.”
“No,” Josef said, shaking his head and once again I was struck by how handsome he was. “Go back. Farther back.”
I gritted my teeth harder. The past was not some place I visited much. It was too dark. Too painful.
He wanted me to relive it, did he? Well, he could go right to hell.
“Meredith, I am trying to offer you an out of all this. But unless you are honest with me, I will follow through with my plans to gut Gray Corps and lay off all its employees.”
“You wouldn’t,” I gasped.
But he would.
The look in his eyes said as much.
“What do you want?” I asked.
“The truth about everything. We need to talk, Meredith.”
“About what? Why do you even care about this? What do you want from me?”
“You seem to be concerned with your stepfather’s employees. Start by telling me what you have to offer,” he said.
My mouth opened and closed, eyebrows raised, and anger warred with total shock inside of me.
This fucker.
“I can’t imagine I have anything you want, Mr. Aziz,” I replied, trying for a formality I did not feel.
“Agree to disagree, Little Red. But, to streamline things, why don’t you start by telling me what happened to you? Where have you been?”
“That has nothing to do with this,” I began, but he interrupted me.
“It has everything to do with this,” he growled.
“We’re here to talk about Gray Corp.”
“We are here to talk about whatever the fuck I want to talk about, Meredith,” he replied. “And I want the truth. Now.”
He wanted the truth. Well, so did I.