Chapter 563

Chapter 563:

“Thanks.” I picked up a slice and chewed, though it tasted like nothing. The bitter medicine had dulled my sense of flavor.

“He was alone when he came to see you,” Yvaine added. “No woman with him.” I chewed slowly, lost in thought.

“Want me to find out?” she asked.

I should’ve said no. Whoever Ashton was with wasn’t my business. I was the one who broke things off, convinced that a man like him, too good to be true, couldn’t possibly want forever with me.

Yet, I nodded.

Maybe out of guilt for pushing me into that cruise, Yvaine threw herself into the task. She made calls, pulled favors, and within a day, she came back with answers. Meanwhile, I was rotting in the hospital, the doctor refusing to discharge me until my fever dropped to a normal, human level.

Yvaine burst in, “You won’t believe what I found p>

“Spill p>

She did, and she was right. It was hard to believe.

Not the part about Lea and Ashton knowing each other for years — I already knew that.

Not the part about Lea being in love with him. That had been obvious.

What shocked me was that Lea had been behind the sabotage at the Aureate Awards. Back then, I hadn’t even known she existed. But while married to Pierre, she had already been plotting to push me out of Ashton’s life.

“I might almost admire her if she weren’t trying to steal your man,” Yvaine said.

“You know what she did while you and Ashton were stranded on that island p>

“What p>

“She sent out rescue teams, even hired private contractors to search the sea. Fair enough, I did the same. But she didn’t stay on the ship. She flew back to Skyline while you were still missing. Turns out she runs a huge company that specializes in cleaning up other people’s messes, and she used that company to attack Ashton’s. She was trying to take over LGH while he was gone p>

𝙉𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙥𝙮 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨 — 𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙞𝙣:

I frowned. “Why?” If she really had feelings for Ashton, why try to swallow his company while he was still lost at sea?

Yvaine spread her hands. “Don’t ask me. You know I’m no business brain. But I asked Emmett, and he said she picked the perfect moment. Ashton holds the controlling shares. He’s the brain and heart of the whole company. With him missing, chaos was bound to break out. Lea leveraged her position as his old friend and business ally and gained a foothold on the board. If Ashton died, she had a decent chance of becoming the next CEO p>

“But why would she do that? Just for money p>

“That’s what Emmett thinks. LGH is massive, with profits anyone would kill for. But if you ask me, I’d say she wants more than that. She’s greedy.” Yvaine gave me a look that was half sympathy, half warning. “You know why Ashton left so soon after he woke up p>

“Why p>

“Lea forced his hand. She told him if he wanted his company back, he had to marry her p>

The flight back to Skyline seemed endless, though the captain insisted it was just under seven hours. Time paid no attention to clocks when your mind was chasing itself in circles.

I barely touched the champagne the flight attendant handed me. Instead, I spent most of the journey staring at the clouds through the oval window, chewing on the inside of my cheek until I could taste copper.