The Devil's obsession with the Heiress

Gavriel’s hand shot out, catching her wrist in a gentle yet firm grip. "Ana," he warned, his voice deep and raspy. "Don’t start something you cannot finish."

Aliana looked up at him, their eyes locked in the darkness. "But what if I want to?"

Pulling his waistband down, Aliana leaned in close and whispered, "Let me make it up to you."

That was all it took to snap the thin thread of restraint he had been clinging to.

Letting out a low huff, Gavriel captured her mouth in a deep kiss. He rolled over until he was positioned over her and parted her thighs to slide between them.

They surrendered to their desires until the first golden rays of dawn crept through the balcony doors, forcing them to stop only because of the impending board meeting they had spent all of yesterday preparing for.

By the time she stepped into the foyer, Aliana looked striking in a dark navy tailored power suit, featuring a fitted blazer with a deep V-neckline and matching wide-leg trousers.

Gavriel followed a few steps behind her, watching as Nigel stood waiting near the front entrance alongside Winston.

Aliana glanced toward Nigel. "Everything in order?"

"Ready when you are, boss," Nigel answered without hesitation.

She nodded approvingly before turning to the butler. "Where are Jade and Cillian? I missed them at the table."

"Madam, it appears both of them are still fast asleep," Winston informed her politely.

"I see. It must be from one too many drinks last night," Aliana mused with a small smile before turning to her husband. "I’ll see you in the evening?"

Gavriel stepped forward, encircling her waist with his arms and pressing a soft kiss against her cheek. "Don’t let those board members push you around."

Her eyes softened as she smiled up at him. "You know better than that."

Gavriel held her gaze, adding in a low voice, "Call me if you need anything."

Aliana beamed at him, touched by how he took her battles as his own. Cupping his jaw, she stood on tiptoe to press a sweet kiss to his lips. "I will, darling."

A flare of desire lit up in Gavriel’s eyes at the endearment. But before he could pull her back in, Aliana offered him a soft chuckle, turned on her heels, and walked out the doors with Nigel, ready to face the storm waiting for her.

.....

Van Empire...

Inside the grand boardroom of Van Empire, executive members dressed in sharp, tailored suits occupied the long mahogany table.

The air in the room was electric, heavy with unspoken tension.

The discussion had finally turned to the vacant CFO seat, and precisely as Nigel had warned, Rufus Avery made his move.

He aggressively pushed for his son, Morris Avery, to be appointed to the board, recommending him directly for the CFO position.

"Mr. Avery, I understand your enthusiasm as a father to have your son follow in your footsteps," Aliana’s cold voice cut through the room. "However, I’m afraid the Van Empire board isn’t a local corner shop where you can simply introduce your son and expect him to be handed a seat just because he shares your last name."

"It is more than reasonable when I am personally transferring half of my voting shares to Morris," Rufus countered smoothly, his sharp eyes fixed on Aliana at the head of the table.

"I think you are forgetting something, Mr. Avery," Aliana replied assertively. "You can only do that if the board approves Mr. Morris after he successfully completes the vetting process. There are no proxies on this board unless they have been formally appointed as alternate directors."

Rufus leaned back, a smug expression touching his features as he gestured to his allies. "Given my decades of service to this company, I suggest we fast-track the approval. I believe the board will back me on this."

"It seems fair," one of his allied board members quickly chimed in. "Mr. Avery’s contributions warrant some leniency."

A small, icy smile curled around Aliana’s lips as she raised a single hand. "Nigel, the file, please."

Nigel adjusted his glasses and seamlessly passed her a thick black dossier.

Aliana opened it slowly, her eyes sweeping over the quiet room. "I feel everyone is being a bit too emotional today. Since no one else bothered to do their homework, why don’t I shed some light on the matter?"

A collective tense breath swept through the room as every eye locked onto the document in her hands, several members swallowing nervously at what she was about to expose.

Aliana began reading from the file. "Morris Avery graduated from the University of Astoria with a GPA of 2.5, which is considered average. As we all know, an applicant with grades that low wouldn’t even qualify for an entry-level associate position here at Van Empire. But for a moment, let’s look past his academics and see if he possesses a credible amount of experience."

Aliana paused, humming softly as her eyes skimmed the page. "Ah. He worked at Company A as an associate and left after a month. Then he joined Company B, only to quit a month later. The same pattern repeats for Companies C and D. Hmm... I’m sensing a trend here."

Aliana flipped to the next page and let out a soft exclamation. "Ah, there it is! Right after Company D, he opened his own firm, which..."

She paused, lifting her gaze to meet Rufus’s murderous glare. "... went bankrupt and shut down within six months. The official reason wasn’t released to the public, but I’m sure Mr. Avery might be able to offer us some insight into what happened."

Rufus gritted his teeth so hard he felt his jaw might dislocate. His face flushed crimson with a mix of rage and humiliation as Aliana laid out his son’s embarrassing track record in front of every board member.

Worse still, he realised she already knew about the embezzlement behind his son’s company collapse, holding back the final blow just to force his silence.

’How dare she!’

Before Rufus could roar out his fury, Aliana casually continued, "Well... whatever the cause was, I’m not particularly interested in digging into it. After all, I have to give some face to my senior board members, don’t I?"

She shut the file with a sharp snap and tossed it onto the table with a thud that made several members flinch.

’Now she wants to give me face after dragging my name through the dirt! This little bitch will pay!’ Rufus screamed internally.

Low whispers spread through the room.

A handful of directors exchanged uneasy glances of sympathy toward Rufus, while others discreetly covered their mouths to hide amused smirks.

Internally, Nigel was in a full cheerleader costume, shaking pom-poms for Aliana’s she-devil persona on full display.