Then Liam let out a low sigh. "Look, Chloe like I said... I literally just decided a few minutes ago. Why are you coming at like I’ve been hiding sothing?"
There was a pause on her end. Then her voice ca softer, almost thoughtful. "Yeah... I know. I get that now. I’m sorry if it ca off too harsh."
Then She bit her lip on the other side of the call, a little regret creeping into her tone. In her mind, she was already backtracking—Maybe she did overreact. Maybe she panicked too quickly. She had just been scared. Scared that Liam might be slowly pulling away from her... especially since Valentina ca back into the picture.
"I just... I just wanted to be sure," she continued, her voice quieter now. "I wanted to be sure you weren’t playing any tricks on , or trying to make feel like I don’t matter. That’s all."
Hearing what She just said, Liam scoffed, almost as if tired. "You happy now? How many tis do I have to say it, Chloe? I’ve told you over and over—everything is fine. You have nothing to worry about. So stop making up stories in your head."
Chloe didn’t say anything. Not imdiately.
Because deep down... she wasn’t sure if she believed that anymore.
Ever since Valentina ca back, sothing had shifted in Liam.
And she knew it.
Chloe didn’t trust him. Not the way she used to. And she didn’t try to hide it anymore—not even from herself.
So she stayed quiet, but in her heart, she already made the decision. She wasn’t going to sit still. She wasn’t going to play the quiet, loyal fiancée waiting in the corner. If Liam could do more in silence, then so could she. She’d keep pushing.
At that mont Liam let out a tired breath.
"Okay. No problem," he muttered. "Let’s just hope this business deal wraps up soon... so we can finally move forward with what we planned."
Chloe gave a dry smile even though he couldn’t see it. We’ll see about that.
And with that, the call ended.
**
Valentina was seated at her desk with her laptop open, her notes scattered across the table, and her brows slightly furrowed. The last touches of the GSK investnt proposal were in place. She leaned back, stretching her neck, then saved the final docunt with a breath of relief.
"Done," she whispered to herself.
Raymond was sitting nearby, flipping through a book. She turned to him and walked over, holding out the printed proposal.
"Can you go through this for ?" she asked softly. "In case I missed sothing."
Raymond took it from her, but instead of opening it imdiately, he looked at her with a warm gaze. "Honestly?" he said. "Even if I don’t look through it... I already know you did an excellent job."
"So you really think I shouldn’t worry?" Valentina asked, narrowing her eyes playfully, but there was sothing else behind her gaze—a quiet challenge, laced with subtle frustration.
Raymond chuckled and reached out to take the docunt from her, but the way she looked at him didn’t soften. It shifted into sothing sharper. That teasing glint was now replaced with sothing closer to a warning. A funny look... but also a deadly one.
Still, he accepted the proposal and casually flipped through the pages. He could already tell from the formatting alone that she had poured herself into this. But Valentina wasn’t done speaking.
"Even if you’re not always around the company," she began, crossing her arms gently across her chest, "and even if you act like you have zero interest in the business your family owns..." Then she paused, eyeing him sharply as his eyes briefly left the paper to glance at her, "...that doesn’t an you don’t know one or two things about how this stuff works."
However Raymond said nothing. He kept flipping through the docunt, but he was listening.
"I’ve been trying to secure contracts like this for years."
At that mont Valentina sighed, lowering herself gently onto the armrest of the couch, her fingers brushing against her temple.
"I know I’ve done my best, but I’m also very aware that I still lack so many things," she murmured, her voice quieter now. "There are gaps I can’t see... things that experience hasn’t taught yet. But maybe you can."
Imdiately Raymond looked up at her, the docunt still in his hand. Then his brow arched with amusent.
"If you can look through it and detect anything—anything at all—I’d be grateful," she continued. "And if there’s sothing you think your dad could also take a look at... then fine, pass it to him. I don’t mind. This is not about . It’s about the company. For the betternt of everyone—your family... ours."
A soft chuckle escaped Raymond’s lips. He shook his head slowly, like he’d heard sothing ridiculous.
"You worry too much, Valentina," he said, his tone warm but teasing. "You always do."
She gave him a tired look, like she wasn’t even going to argue that statent. He knew she worried too much—but she had every reason to.
"If you really think GSK is this hard to crack," he said, casually folding the pages back together, "then let’s not wait. Tomorrow, we’ll go over there. I’ll take you myself. You’ll et so of their board mbers, ask questions, see how they run their contracts."
Upon hearing what Raymond just said Valentina’s eyes narrowed, Her arms slowly crossed over her chest, and her voice rose without warning. "Wow. So that’s what you think of ?"
Raymond blinked, confused by the sudden shift in her tone.
"You make it sound like I don’t know how difficult it is to access GSK," she snapped. "Like I’m just exaggerating everything. You think it’s so small office down the street? Just walk in, say hello and get a billion-dollar contract handed to you? Is that how you see it?"
Raymond opened his mouth to explain, but she didn’t stop.
"Everyone knows how powerful and strict GSK is," she continued, taking a step forward. "Everyone knows it’s not so random company anyone can just show up at. Yet here you are... making it sound like I’m scared of sothing easy. Raymond, that’s insulting."
He let out a quiet sigh, then leaned forward on his knees, hands clasped. "Okay, no problem," he said calmly. "But listen, Valentina—just brace yourself."
"Brace myself?" she scoffed.
"Yes," he said, this ti with a subtle grin on his face. "Because you’re going in there very soon. I an it. You’ve already got that contract—you just don’t know it yet. What’s left is the final sit-down, the last eting, then it’s all yours. So, brace yourself."
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