The Tycoon's Gutsy Wife

Chapter 21: A Deadline

His face hardened into a scowl, before a grin stretched on his lips.

’Typical Donovan,’ he thought.

After what Ian had told him, even though he couldn’t exactly make any sense of his words, things weren’t going to work in his favor if Darien was involved.

He’d seen her with him at the Solvaena anniversary party, and who knows why she was there with him.

"Is there anything else you would like to say to me?" She asked, her impatience evident like an elephant trying to hide behind a toothpick.

Theodore was about to respond when his eyes suddenly caught a figure walking towards them. His eyes immediately darkened when he recognized Darien—dressed in a custom-tailored suit that demanded attention—walking towards Adeline.

Adeline noticed how Theodore’s eyes darkened and immediately turned to find Darien walking towards them.

"Adeline," he called her with so much familiarity in his tone, his gaze soft with a faint smile on her lips.

Adeline glanced around, hoping it was just a look-alike and not Darien standing before her.

A lot of questions weighed on her mind.

What was Darien doing there, who had invited him, and most especially, why did he come?

She decided to go with the first question.

"What are you doing here, Mr. Hawthorne?"

"I invited him," Mr. Donovan replied, coming up from behind Darien, his gaze heavy when they landed on Theodore, who suddenly felt uncomfortable. "I thought it would be a good opportunity to have you two associate with each other even more, don’t you think, Adeline?" He asked.

Theodore was already starting to boil in rage.

This was the same man who’d punched him so hard he felt unconscious and woke up in his home.

He was also thinking about many things. Why did he say Adeline with so much familiarity in his tone like he had...had feelings for her? Theodore felt his chest tighten, his tongue bitter with jealousy.

"Not at all, grandfather," she responded, forcing a smile to her lips.

"Good. So why don’t you keep my guest entertained on my behalf," the older man requested.

Adeline wasn’t sure what her grandfather could be planning, but this wasn’t the time to be asking questions back. She could only do what she was told now and question later.

She gave a curt nod and left. Darien gave Theodore a look, a faint smile on his lips before following behind Adeline.

The guests were all worried and uncomfortable now.

The Donovans and Hawthornes don’t talk anymore, especially since they still suspect the eldest member of the Donovan family to be the mastermind behind Darien’s father and grandfather’s deaths.

They could only hope there wouldn’t be any blood bath happening at the party.

Hazel watched Adeline leave with a handsome man. Her eyes narrowed at her sister’s back, still offended by the insult.

Adeline didn’t know where to take Darien, so she just led him outside, where they would have enough privacy to talk.

Once they arrived at the patio where she usually went so she could get some fresh air back when she still lived with her family, she stopped to ask, "What exactly are you doing here?"

Darien cocked up an eyebrow at her.

"Didn’t you hear your grandfather say he invited me here?" He questioned her back.

"I know that." Her eyes turned into slits. "But why are you here? You could have easily turned down his offer."

"But I didn’t."

He leaned his back towards the wall, a sigh escaping from his lips.

"You haven’t given me a reply yet, Adeline," he reminded her.

The way he always called her name made her stomach twitch. It was like he knew her before. She addressed him as Mr. Hawthorne because that was the way things were supposed to be, but he always called her by her name.

Even so, she didn’t recognize him from anywhere.

Adeline tore her gaze from him.

His offer, the one he’d made on the day she went to his company for her business proposal.

According to him, she didn’t sound convincing enough, so he offered for her to be his plus one to important events.

He claimed that he needed to see if she was professional enough to handle business events and speak with guests professionally, all because she didn’t hold an office in the Donovan company. So to him, she was a rookie he couldn’t trust.

She’d informed her grandfather about this, but the only man only accepted to give her an office in his company when she managed to bag a deal.

She couldn’t help but snort.

Her grandfather always turned everything into a challenge.

"I’m still thinking about it," she replied. Even though he didn’t ask her to do anything weird, just attend events, she couldn’t help but find things weird.

She was still a married woman, even though she didn’t want to be. And unlike Theodore who’d committed infidelity while they were together, she wasn’t going to follow in his footsteps and ruin what little peace she’d managed to get for the last two weeks.

"You’ve been thinking for a while now, don’t you think?" He questioned her, his voice sounding a little cold now. "If you’re unable to decide by next week, then don’t come to my company ever again."

She glared at him, but once she realized what she was doing, she softened her look, sighing.

She bit her teeth, hoping she wasn’t going to sound disrespectful or anger him.

"What you’re asking of me is going to stir up rumors and people are going to start getting the wrong idea," she tried to explain, hoping to get her point across before an insult would slip past her tongue. "We’re from prestigious families, and we can’t have people thinking so low of us."

There have been rumors that Darien was a playboy, and if he wanted to use her to clear them, then this was a very bad idea.

Darien was about to respond, but then he caught a movement from the corners of his eyes.

The flash was quick and before he could move out of the way, he’d been shot.