New beginning: Billionaire love story

Chapter 223 Claire’s absent

He stepped further into the room, his eyes narrowing at Matthew. "What are you doing here, Matthew? Where's Claire?"

Matthew leaned back in his chair, looking far too comfortable for Alex's liking. "I could ask you the same thing," he said with a smirk, clearly enjoying whatever game he thought they were playing.

Alex, however, was not in the mood for games. He stepped inside the office, letting the door close with a soft click behind him, and walked purposefully toward Matthew. "Where is Claire?" he repeated, his voice sharper now.

Matthew didn't even flinch. He just stared up at Alex with a bored expression, as if Alex's presence was the least interesting thing happening in his day. "Why do you want to know?" he asked, his tone just shy of condescending. Alex's frown deepened, annoyance bubbling under the surface. "I need to see her," he said coldly. "I need to talk to her."

"Well, she's not here," Matthew replied with a shrug, as if that was the end of the discussion.

"Where is she?" Alex demanded, his patience wearing thin.

Matthew leaned forward slightly, connecting his fingers on the desk as he stared directly into Alex's eyes. "And what's so important that you need to talk to her? If it's business, you can tell me, and I'll make sure she gets the message."

Alex bristled at the suggestion. "I'm not here to play telephone with you, Matthew. I need to speak to Claire directly. I don't need you to be the owl delivering messages."

Matthew's cool demeanor started to crack as irritation flickered in his eyes. "I'm busy, Alex. If you don't have anything important to say, maybe you should just leave."

Alex scoffed, the sound full of disdain. "You don't like me, do you?"

voice dripping with

his eyes, clearly done with the back-and-forth. "You can hate me all you want, Matthew. But you don't have the right to decide who can or cannot

handle. But just before he stepped out, he glanced back at Matthew, a slight smirk playing on his lips. "If it weren't for my help, you wouldn't have found Claire in the basement." And with that, he walked out of the office, leaving Matthew fuming in

Matthew had been so overwhelmed with panic that he couldn't think

simmered. He knew Alex's type all too well charming on the outside, but nothing but trouble beneath the surface. The kind of trouble that

out of the Metacortex building, his mood sourer than a lemon soaked in vinegar. He had come all this way to talk to Claire, only to find out she wasn't even there. To make matters worse, Matthew acting like he has every access into Claire's life and it annoys Alex.

open the door to his car and slid into the driver's seat. He let his head fall back against

pocket, snapping him out of his thoughts. He pulled it out, squinting at the screen. Abigail's name flashed brightly. He sighed, knowing that he probably couldn't ignore her without feeling

to inject some enthusiasm into his voice,

chipper as always, like she had a direct line to some endless source of energy. "Just wanted to let you know

his email. "Got them," he said, scanning through the designs. They were

was wondering if you'd be up to grab dinner tonight?

hesitated, glancing at

of him wanted to just go home and wallow in his frustration, but the other part the professional part-knew that he should probably take this opportunity to give Abigail some real-time feedback. Plus, she had been working hard, and it was the least

sure," he finally said, trying to sound more upbeat than

picked. It was a cozy, upscale place with dim lighting and soft jazz playing in the background. He spotted Abigail right away, seated at a corner table, waving at him with a bright smile. "Hey, glad

too," Alex replied, sliding into the seat across from her. They exchanged a few pleasantries, and the conversation flowed easily enough, but Alex found his mind wandering. He kept thinking about Claire, about Matthew, and about what happened last night. Abigail noticed, of course. She was sharp like that. "You seem a little distracted,"

forcing a smile. "But really, the sketches are great. I think we're close