lanie gave him a smile then and mimicked his pose as she asked," Then how do you expect to work with soone who wronged ?"
Peter's brows furrowed, his confusion evident.
lanie leaned back in her chair and stared at the man. "I ca to you out of goodwill, Mr. Burskey. I knew you felt wronged, and I hoped to ask for forgiveness for not standing by you when you needed LuxeArt. And I would have respected your decision had you chosen not to et with or continued refusing LuxeArt's offers for a tie-up. That would have been your right."
Peter opened his mouth as if to speak, but she raised a hand, halting him and he scowled. Of course she had been at mistake at the ti. If she had paid attention then this would not have happened. If he had not been kicked out of LuxeArt, no one would have believed those accusations.
However, he could not say it. Because afterwards, he had already discovered that lanie was not the one who had been in charge. Before he could think of what more to say, lanie continued in a sharper tone," But instead, you invited to your ho- under the pretext of talking."
A flicker of understanding crossed Peter's face, but he remained silent. Yes. He had invited her and then...
"And what happened when I arrived? Your guards humiliated . They made feel like an intruder—like so desperate trespasser who had to be kept at bay." She let the words sink in before adding, "Your assistant and your guests, they didn't even try to hide their contempt. Do you recall what they said?"
Peter exhaled through his nose, shifting uncomfortably.
"They implied," lanie pressed on, "that I was trying to sell myself. That I was willing to sleep with soone—anyone, even you, to revive my business. And they didn't stop there. They spread those disgusting rumors, fanned the flas, and watched as my reputation burned. As your dear guests walked out of your house and talked nonsense about , saring my na and reputation. You rubbed my nose in your celelbration of your partnership with Madam Collin,
Peter's assistant looked as if she wanted to intervene, but Peter held up a hand, silencing her. His expression was unreadable now, but lanie wasn't finished.
"You ask why I question this sudden change of heart?" she said, tilting her head slightly. "You were willing to believe the worst of without hesitation. And now, because of a single piece of evidence, you're ready to work together?" She let out a quiet, humorless chuckle. "Forgive if I'm not so quick to trust. Nor am I eager to work with soone who would not play fair."
"Whether you were wrong or not, LuxeArt was right to break ties with you to avoid bringing the accusation to their door, in the larger sc of things. "But what you did."
Finally, unable to stop herself, the asisstanrt broke in, "Mr Burskey was not aware of the rumours. He did not spread them. It was . I was angry on his behalf and did that."
lanie sent a sharp gance to the assistant, asking," Really? And when he discovered what you had done? What did he do to stop the spread of the rumors?"
The assistant opened her mouth and then closed it. Honestly, they had not done anything. When the rumors were raging, Peter had just discovered the betrayal that Madam Collins had done. So he'd been preparing for that and not paid attention to anything else.
Peter's assistant shifted uncomfortably, unable to provide an answer.
Then, a new voice cut through the tension.
"Miss lanie," the lawyer spoke up calmly. "While I understand your grievances, let's be practical here. Mr. Burskey has already exposed Madam Collins for what she truly is. The focus of the industry has shifted. No one is talking about you anymore—your so-called scandal has been forgotten."
lanie turned to look at him coolly. "And that's supposed to make it better?"
"Why not. After al, this ans," the lawyer continued, unperturbed, "that you have an opportunity here. LuxeArt needs this partnership. So let's not pretend this isn't in your favor as well. You ca to my client here you needed sothing, did you not? So why pretend to be all offended now?"
"Reputation in this industry is fleeting. You have the chance to rebuild yours, to push forward without the weight of the past dragging you down. Rejecting this partnership out of pride would be—" he paused, searching for the word, "—unwise."
"Unwise," she echoed, her voice tinged with sothing unreadable. "You make it sound like I should be grateful."
"Not grateful. Strategic. You have every right to hold on to your anger, but emotions won't fix what's broken. Business will."
Peter finally spoke then, knowing what lanie was demanding, "I didn't stop those rumors, lanie. That was my failure. But I am offering you sothing now. A fresh start, a way forward."
lanie studied him, and laughed drily, "A fresh start? How convenient for you."
"You want my answer?" lanie finally said. "Then convince , Mr. Burskey. Tell why I should trust you and maybe I will. But until then, I am sorry but we will continue to not be partners."
"Miss lanie! You are making a mistake! Mr Burskey is already an establised na in the industry while LuxeArt is less than nothing at the mont. This is your chance to push LuxeArt back on its feet. And you are looking a gift horse in the mouth!"
Peter grimaced and stood up, cutting off his lawyer's words," lanie, this old man will definitely give you an explanation for whatever transpired and just like you helped clean my reputation, I will do the sa as part of my apology to you.. Until then, we will not work together."
lanie nodded slowly and watched as Peter Burskey walked out of the conference room with his entourage.
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