Mr. Villain's Lovely Wife

Lovely wife 218

Isolated. Discredited. Vulnerable.

Isolated. Discredited. Vulnerable.

33

"Wait!" Cass rushed after Olivier as the elevator door opened. She grabbed his arm. What am I supposed to do now?" she demanded. "My fans are already stirring up trouble. We need Isabella to divorce Liam so we can move forward. What happens if she doesn't?"

Olivier stepped into the elevator without glancing back. "She won't have a choice," he said.

Cassandra shook her head, panic rising. "That's not good enough!" she snapped. "You promised me this marriage. You said if I played along, it would happen. If you don't deliver-" She shoved Celeste's hand off her shoulder when she tried to calm her. "Don't touch me," Cass snapped.

Turning back to Olivier, she stepped right in front of him before he could press the button. “You promised," she said through clenched teeth. "And if you don't make this happen, I'll burn you alive."

Olivier's jaw flexed, but he said nothing.

Cassandra turned on her heel, marched inside the elevator alone, and jabbed the close button before either Olivier or Celeste could move. The doors slid shut, cutting her off from them.

For a second, neither Olivier nor Celeste moved. Then Celeste turned to him quickly." Don't mind her," she said. "I'll handle her. Just give me some time."

Olivier stared at the closed doors, his fists tightening at his sides.

Celeste stepped closer, lowering her voice. "You need to calm down," she said. "Don't let Isabella's words get to you. That's what she wants. If you lose control, you'll lose everything."

Olivier didn't answer. He kept staring at the closed elevator, his mind already spinning with new plans.

Celeste opened her mouth, but Olivier cut her off with a sharp glance. "Shut up, close your mouth," he said.

She stiffened and stayed silent.

"Go back to the hotel first," Olivier added. "I have a few people I need to see and calm that woman down!"

Celeste hesitated, then gave a short nod. Seeing this, Olivier immediately turned away without another word, his steps quick as he disappeared around the corner.

Meanwhile, upstairs, Izzy sat on the edge of the bed, her phone propped up against a stack of books for the video call. Maria's face filled the screen, her expression serious.

"The assault charges will be dropped before the day ends," Maria said. "Liam wasn't

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really arrested. He was escorted for questioning. The media twisted the story."

her temple.

have wanted to damage Liam's reputation. Make it

stared at the screen. "Can you stop

desk, flipping through them. "Liam won't spend a night in prison. I'll make sure of it. But listen to me carefully, Izzy. Do not act carelessly. This could be part of a

curling against

me

to overreact?"

is- is hoping you'll make a move that'll be harder to clean up. Stay put for now. Let me handle

a few more minutes, Maria continued giving /updates, walking Izzy through what had already been filed and who was working on Liam's case. Every step seemed carefully managed, but the warning remained clear-someone else was playing a

Maria was sure Izzy understood everything,

long moment, staring

phone once before

She needed to think.

to sit and think. Her phone lit up again, vibrating against

screen.

switching to video call. lan's face appeared almost immediately, and the

and well," lan said without any

"Thank you," she said.

once. He set aside a few papers on his desk. "I'll get straight to the point. There's pressure building from certain board members. After your accident,

tense."

flinch. "I assumed

said. "They want to see you step back from

drag Rossi Group's

"Let me guess. Gregory

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didn't answer right away. He adjusted his chair slightly. “And Marla DuPont. They're

arms. "What

Horvath's case, or

tapped once against her knee. "They can't

Temporary custodial management until the board deems your position secure

Of

for a beat before continuing. "I'm not

telling you how things are stacking up.

opened her eyes and looked straight at the screen. "What about

vote against it. So

tends to lean your way if you give

"How