He stopped, his eyes like shards of ice. “Mom, you need to control Alicia. If she causes more trouble, can you personally cover the losses the company will suffer?”
Stella’s voice shot up an octave. “What is that supposed to mean? Has that wretched woman poisoned you against your own family-“
“Poisoned me?” Trey let out a harsh, cold laugh and slammed a financial report down on the coffee table. “Thanks to your constant interruptions yesterday, she failed to secure three key.contracts. The company lost nearly ten million. So tell me, whose fault is that really?”
The color drained from both Stella and Alicia’s faces.
“Trey!” Alicia shrieked, her voice shrill. “You’re yelling at us for her? She’s just an outsider-“
“An outsider?” His glare was sharp enough to cut steel. “She’s the one building Fox Group into a publicly traded company. And you? All you do is spend my money and get in the way.”
He fixed them both with a final, uncompromising stare.
“The two of you will apologize to Khloe. Now.”
Stella reacted as if she’d been scalded. “Apologize? I’m her mother-in-law! On what grounds should I?”
“On the grounds that she’s holding the company’s core project for next quarter.”
Arthur finally spoke, tossing the file onto the coffee table. That riverside villa under your name, and Alicia’s trust fund they’re frozen, effective immediately. They’ll stay frozen until you apologize to Khloe.”
“Mom,” Trey added, his voice steely, “you need to get a handle on Alicia. No matter how spoiled she is, she doesn’t get to gamble with the company’s future.”
That villa was Stella’s pride and joy, her ultimate status symbol. Alicia’s trust fund was her only leverage over her husband. Losing them would mean they couldn’t hold their heads up in the Fox family.
Alicia panicked. Tears welled instantly in her eyes. “Dad! You can’t do this to me. I just had a baby…!
“The Fox family’s money can support idlers, but not fools, Arthur snapped. “Either you apologize to your sister- in-law immediately, or you pack up and leave this house. Choose.”
Stella’s hands shook violently. She looked at Trey’s hardened profile, then at her husband’s uncompromising stare.
Only then did she realize that her attempt to crush Khloe had backfired spectacularly. Instead of humiliating her daughter-in-law, she and Alicia had drawn fire from both husband and son, suffering heavy punishment in return.
At last, Stella clenched her teeth and ordered the servant to dial Khloe’s number.
When Khloe answered, Stella’s voice was stiff as rusted iron. The word “sorry” was torn from her throat as if it were barbed wire.
Alicia sobbed into the receiver, her words a tearful mumble. “I-I shouldn’t have disturbed you at work…”
When the call ended, a heavy silence fell over the living room.
Stella stared out the window, her eyes burning with pure venom. Her hatred for Khloe seethed within her.
“That bitch dared to humiliate me and Alicia. One day, I’ll make her pay a hundred times over,’ she thought.
That evening, when Trey returned home, Angela had prepared an elaborate dinner.
Thrilled that Khloe wasn’t there, she saw it as a chance for their little family of three to finally enjoy a meal in peace.
While Angela and Pete were in high spirits, Trey didn’t crack a smile. Despite the feast on the table, he just pushed his food around with his fork before claiming he had no appetite and retreating to his study.
The company was a mess, his family was a constant source of drama- a throbbing headache pulsed behind Trey’s eyes.
The worst part was, if Khloe had successfully forced his hand this time, what was to stop her from holding the company hostage again in the future?
The more he thought about it, the tighter his chest felt.
And every time his thoughts landed on Khloe, the ache dug especially deep.
He couldn’t focus on work. His finger hovered over her number on his phone, nearly dialing before he stopped.himself at the last second.
If he gave in now, she would only tighten her grip.
Trey had no energy for intimacy with Angela that night. Even when she knocked and came in, he brushed her off, using work as an excuse.
“Since Khloe hasn’t come home,” Angela asked quietly later, having noticed his distraction, “are you thinking about her?”
Trey let out a short, humorless laugh, reaching out to ruffle her hair. “I am thinking about her. I’m thinking about why-why she dared to throw such a huge tantrum over my mother and Alicia.”
“She’s never lost her temper with you before,” Angela murmured. “Is that what scares you?”
“What do you mean?”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.