A Divorce He Regrets

Chapter 278:

DOMINIC

I sat before the board of directors, their eyes boring into me with unyielding scrutiny. The room was thick with tension and the low murmur of anxious voices. One director leaned forward, his tone edged with impatience, and demanded, “Dominic, give us an answer—what’s really going on? Where is Raina, and why are our stocks like this?”

His words echoed around the table, and I felt my heart freeze. I knew I couldn’t tell them the truth—that Raina had been kidnapped. I forced myself to remain composed, even as my mind screamed in silent agony.

Before I could formulate a lie, another board member, his voice bitter and condescending, interjected, “You know, giving a woman raised from poverty the responsibility to run a company like the Grahams—it’s bound to fail.”

His words stung, and I glared at him, my anger rising with each syllable. Unable to contain my fury any longer, I rose abruptly from my seat and shot back, “Do you have any idea how this company was built? The very foundation of the Grahams was built on blood, sweat, and determination—something you clearly know nothing about.”

The room fell momentarily silent, the weight of my retort hanging in the air.

But one of the directors quickly interrupted, his voice calm yet firm as he noted, “There’s no need to argue about that now; that’s not why we called you here.”

His dismissal only added depth to the restless energy in the room. They pressed on, demanding to know where Raina was and why she hadn’t been in the office.

Swallowing hard, I forced a lie out through gritted teeth: “She’s taking care of our grandma,” I said, knowing full well it was a lie, but it was the only excuse I could muster in that moment.

As I sat back down, my mind raced with guilt and the bitter taste of my own deception. I knew I couldn’t reveal that Raina had been kidnapped—not yet. My thoughts churned with regret as I silently vowed that I would do everything in my power to bring her back, even if I had to sacrifice every ounce of trust I’d built with these men. That lie, flimsy and desperate, was all I had to keep them at bay for now.

As I sat at the head of the conference room table, the board members bickered back and forth about the company’s safety and the current scandal—a rumor of someone posing as part of the Grahams.

One of the directors slapped his hand onto the table, his voice ringing out in fury: “Dominic, what is happening? I heard there’s somebody out there saying he’s part of the Graham family. How is that possible?”

𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝘁 𝙜Ɐ𝗅𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝘀⩷𝖼𝗈𝗺

I felt my patience thinning. I leaned forward, my eyes cold and unwavering, and said firmly, “It’s a lie. There’s nothing to it.”

My words cut through… The cacophony filled the room, and for a moment, everything fell silent. But the tension flared up again as another director pressed, “Then who is behind these lies? Who dares tarnish our company’s name?”

I swallowed hard, but I kept my cool, even while my mind screamed with the intensity of the crisis. “That shouldn’t be cause for alarm. Like I said, they are all lies—baseless rumors,” I answered brusquely. “And I will deal with it.”

The arguments continued, voices rising and falling in a chaotic dance of accusations and defenses. I listened as they bickered back and forth, each question and remark a bitter reminder that more trouble was surely on the way.

I slammed my fist onto the table and declared with gritted teeth, “I said… There’s no truth to these ridiculous claims!”

The room fell silent.

In that quiet moment, I silently vowed to uncover the source of these lies. I needed to know—who was behind them? And then, at last, after what seemed like forever, the meeting suddenly ended. I sat stunned for a moment, the crushing weight of their doubts pressing down on me, and I knew that this was just the beginning of a fierce storm.

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