âNo! I wonât! You canât make me apologize.â Betty started making a scene.
âXavier, come in â Jasper raised his voice. Hearing that, Xavier knocked and entered the room. before greeting everyone with a curt nod.
âShow the document to the chairman.â
âYes, Mr. Jasper.â Eyes darting, Xavier handed Javier the document.
âWhatâs this?â
âThese are last yearâs and this yearâs financial reports of EV Concepts, coârun by Sophia and Betty,â
Jasper said flatly.
Sophia and Bettyâs faces stiffened as they tensed up.
âThe reports show that the store has been making annual losses of almost 10 million in the three years since its operations. They also received funds from the Beckett Group to pay off the operational costs.
âFrom the start, the agreement dictates that it is Sophia who will take care of the profits and losses. If the Beckett Group doesnât get a share of your profits, we shouldnât have to pay for your losses too.â
Jasper looked down. âIf Betty does not offer a public apology for the incident, I will exercise my right as the president to shut down EV Concepts.â
What? Shutting down the store?
Betty froze while Sophia seethed in hatred. A murderous look flashed across Sophiaâs eyes. She quickly grabbed Javierâs arm and shed tears. âJavier, the store is your birthday gift for me from three years ago. We canât shut it down!â
Javierâs jaw stiffened when he saw the evidence. As the chairman, he could not refute Jasperâs accusation and proposal.
âI can turn a blind eye to the losses for your sake, but with a few conditionsâBetty must apologize publicly, and Sophia shall pay for the losses her business had incurred.
âOtherwise, I will reveal the losses in the companyâwide meeting the day after tomorrow. By that time, no one could turn the situation around.â Jasper was unfeeling and determined.
Sophia glowered at him. She would never let EV Concepts shut down. It was an important part of her wider plan.
âBetty, throw a press conference tomorrow night. Do what Jasper asked.â Javierâs brows were Shoulders slumped, Betty looked like a deflated balloon.
From the darkening look on Javierâs face, Sophia knew that she had completely lost the battle.
She had no choice but to focus on her longâterm strategy as she shot daggers at Jasperâs back.
After Jasper and Xavier left the study, they heard Javier smashing items onto the ground and the crying sounds of the two women.
Xavier scratched his head in confusion and asked cautiously, âMr. Jasper, I thought you wanted to go against Madam Alice at all cost. Why the sudden change of mind?â
âKeep your nose out of my business.â
He thought of Aliceâs clear eyes and her delicious scent when they were inches apart. That brought some emotions to his otherwise impassive eyes.
He tried convincing himself that he had changed his mind to side with Alice because of the surveillance footage and Bettyâs unapologetic behavior. But was that the truth?
Why did he overreact when Sophia and Betty criticized Alice, and when Javier demanded him to get the divorce over with? Perhaps, deep down, there was a reason he sided with Alice. 1 âWe weaponized the evidence we gathered with much effort just to force Ms. Betty to apologize. Donât you think thatâs a waste?â Smirking, Xavier still couldnât get over it.
âThatâs fine. Even if I released the evidence to the public, Dad has his way of covering up for Sophia.
Theyâre lovebirds, after all.â
Mocking his parents, Jasper shook off the imagery of Aliceâs alluring eyes in his mind. The look in his eyes deepened.
He continued, âI have simply chosen an outcome that serves the two of us. I needed to make up to Alice for unfairly accusing her at the auction over Liaâs incident.â
He let out a wistful sigh as he was gripped by bitterness. âWeâre even now. I donât want to be indebted to her in any way.â