Mr. Villain's Lovely Wife

Chapter 144

Chapter 144

The door shut behind Liam with a quiet click.

Silence stretched across the boardroom for a few moments, the tension from the meeting still thick in the air. No one moved. No one spoke. It was as if they were waiting for confirmation that what they had just witnessed was real.

Then-

“He smiled.” muttered Christopher Adler, the CFO, blinking at the door like he had just seen a ghost. He turned to the others, still processing. “He actually smiled.”

A ripple of disbelief moved through the room.

“Did you see that?” another executive, Vincent Dupont, asked, adjusting his tie. “Or am I–am I hallucinating?”

11

G170

“You’re not hallucinating,” Luca Moretti, head of legal, muttered. He leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, looking deep in thought. “That was a smile.”

The entire team exchanged glances.

Their CEO–Liam Horvath–the man who had spent the last few weeks tearing through everyone like a cold–blooded executioner, had just smiled at his phone. Not a smirk, not a half–second twitch of amusement, but an actual, unmistakable smile.

It was unsettling.

Christopher frowned, rubbing his chin. “Since when does he smile?”

Vincent leaned in. “Since never.”

“Exactly,” Christopher said. “So, the question is–who the hell was on the other end of that message?”

A hushed murmur spread through the room.

Liam had been in a foul mood since he returned from his last trip. No one knew exactly what had happened, but his patience had been razor–thin, his temper even worse. The Covington acquisition team had been getting the worst of it, but truthfully, everyone had been walking on eggshells.

And yet–one text had flipped a switch.

Luca tapped his pen against the table. “Who do we know that could possibly make him react like that?”

Vincent’s eyes gleamed with curiosity. “A woman, obviously.”

Silence.

Laurent, leaned forward. “Do you think it’s… you know… someone special?” The CEO had been very private with his life. Many rumors surrounded him, but everyone in this room knew that those aren’t true.

fell into

It made sense.

conversations during meetings, let alone be distracted by his phone. If

Wed, 26 Feb

Chapter 144

someone from his family? Christopher wondered out

wouldn’t have

it’s business–related. Nothing

his chair.

seemed to

question hung

“I mean, has anyone ever seen him with

“Not romantically, no.”

heard he doesn’t date.”

Someone like him?

chuckled. “Maybe he’s just good at

“If that’s the case, then we’ll probably never know.”

the door Liam had walked out of. “Unless,” he mused,

glances, but

managed to do the impossible–change

Izzy when he arrived at his office.

he asked. “If anything feels off, take the meds

for London after what happened to Izzy wasn’t something he wanted, but he had no choice. She had

foul since the moment his plane left the U.S. What worsened his mood was

back in his chair, waiting for Izzy’s

Izzy finally said, dragging out the word.

his phone. “What’s wrong?”

lovesick,” she said dramatically. “Terrible condition, really. There’s only one known cure,

the bridge of his nose, but a smirk tugged at his

sighed. “And yet, you still like

his head, but the tension in his shoulders eased. “If you keep saying things like that, I’ll fly to

are trying

you know.”

straightened in his chair, his eyes

Chapter 166

leaned Brother and wing and of hair oder Vast is

the

fall with Law Bzzy countuned. And he’s maying to the same bones

“%ur exactly as doing in