New beginning: Billionaire love story

Claudia yanked her wrist free from Alexander's grasp, her eyes blazing with fury. She took a step back, fists clenched at her sides, while Claire stood there, arms crossed, looking utterly unbothered. "What's your answer, Claudia?" Claire's voice was calm but firm, her cold gaze making Claudia wince.

Claudia gritted her teeth, palms fisting tighter as frustration built inside her. Her knees buckled, and she slumped to the floor, tears springing to her eyes. She buried her face in her hands and sobbed, her shoulders shaking as the weight of everything came crashing down. Claire rolled her eyes, clearly unimpressed. "Oh, come on, Claudia. We don't have time for this." She tapped her foot impatiently, glancing at her watch. "I asked you a question. What's it gonna be?"

Claudia sniffled and looked up; her face streaked with tears. The coldness in Claire's face was like a slap, making her stomach churn. Claire wasn't going to let her get away with this. With a shaky breath, Claudia wiped her eyes and muttered, "Fine... I'll delete the video. And... and I'll make an apology video too."

Claire gave a curt nod, her expression softening just slightly. "That's what I like to hear. But," she added, her voice hardening again, "this needs to end now. We're not dragging this out."

Claudia blinked, trying to pull herself together. "What... what do you mean?" she stammered, struggling to stand, her legs wobbly beneath her. "I'll do it tomorrow. Just-"

"Tomorrow?" Claire cut her off with a sharp laugh, shaking her head. "You think I've got time? Claudia, if you don't do this right now, I'll upload that video myself. You don't want that, do you?" Claudia's jaw clenched, her face pale with fear and anger. "Fine," she spat, barely able to get the word out.

"Good," Claire smirked, the victory sweet on her lips. "Take your position, then."

Claire turned to Alexander, who was still watching the whole scene unfold, clearly torn between satisfaction and disbelief. "Alex," she said, tossing him a phone. "You're going to film this. And when it's done, upload it straight to social media."

Alexander caught the phone and glanced at Claire, a curious look crossing his face. "Where did you even get that video?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Claire only shrugged, her lips quirking into a sly smile. "I have my ways." She looked back at Claudia, who was still standing awkwardly, avoiding eye contact with both of them. "Now, Claudia, are you ready? This has to be convincing. No half-hearted performance, or we'll be doing this again."

Claudia opened her mouth to protest, her face still blotchy from crying, but it was too late. Claire gestured for Alexander to start the recording. "Go ahead."

Claudia hesitated for a second, then took a deep breath. Her voice cracked as she started speaking, but she forced herself to push through it. "I... I want to apologize to Harris Company and especially to Alexander Harris. The video that's been circulating online was a misunderstanding. That's not what actually happened..."

Her voice wavered, and fresh tears streaked down her cheeks as she continued. Claire watched the whole thing with a detached smirk, arms folded as she observed the performance. Claudia didn't even have the courage to look her in the eye. Every word sounded hollow, forced-exactly what Claire expected. She almost felt sorry for her.

Almost.

The moment Claudia finished her apology, she stood there, trembling, waiting for Claire's judgment. Claire tilted her head, studying her like a hawk. "Not bad," she said, her tone nonchalant. "It'll do." Alexander stopped the recording and quickly tapped a few buttons, uploading it to social media. "Done," he said, sliding the phone into his pocket.noveldrama

Claudia stood frozen, her hands limp at her sides, looking completely defeated. Claire stepped forward, her smirk widening. "You know, Claudia," she said in a mocking tone, "sometimes it pays to be smart before you pull stunts like this. Now look at you, crying like a child."

Claudia's lip quivered, but she said nothing, glaring at the floor.

Claire's eyes glinted with a mixture of amusement and pity. The whole thing was just so... predictable. Claudia wasn't the first person to try and play dirty in this game, and she certainly wouldn't be the last.

But seeing her like this? It reminded

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Claire of someone else-Lisa. The similarities were eerie, really. Lisa had always tried to pull similar stunts, acting tough until the moment everything backfired And just like with Lisa, dealing with

Claudia was easy.

When Claudia finally finished, she wiped her tears quickly and turned to Alexander. "It's done," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Please... please don't upload anything else about my past." Claire smirked, leaning forward slightly, enjoying this moment. "Only if you keep your end of the agreement. If you try anything, and I mean anything, to sabotage my project, then I won't hesitate." Claudia nodded quickly, her eyes still wide with fear and desperation.

But before she could say anything more, Alexander's voice cut through the air, cold and unyielding. "I'll be terminating my contract with Solstice Vineyard."

Claudia's head snapped toward him, eyes wide with shock. "What? You... you're canceling the contract?"

Alexander didn't flinch. He crossed his arms and stared at her like she was nothing more than a business inconvenience. "Yes. You'll be hearing from my lawyer soon. We'll discuss the details then."

Claudia's face drained of color. She

stood there, her mouth slightly open, completely caught off guard. She had expected to grovel a bit, sure, but she hadn't seen this coming. Not only had she been humiliated once, but now, she was losing her contract With the Harris Company

This couldn't be happening.

"You can't do this!" she blurted out, her voice rising in panic. "We had an agreement!"

Alexander's expression didn't change. He was as calm and collected as ever. "We had an agreement, yes. But after today, I don't see how this partnership benefits me anymore. It's done." Claudia turned to Claire, pleading with her eyes. "Please... you have to do something. You can't let him cancel the contract. It's my family's business! This will ruin us."

Claire only raised an eyebrow, the smirk never leaving her face. "You should've thought of that before you go with your plan."

Claudia paced the floor, her face flushed with a mix of anger and desperation. "You can't do this, Alexander!" she spat, her voice shaking. "You signed the contract. You can't just-terminate it!"

Alexander, standing with a cool smirk, leaned against the desk, arms crossed. He watched her unravel, his expression unreadable but clearly amused. "Oh, Claudia," he said, his tone almost mocking. "I think you might've forgotten something." Claudia stopped, glaring at him. "Forgotten what?"

Alexander's smirk widened. "There's a clause. It states that if either party feels they're at a loss, the contract can be terminated. And let me tell you," he straightened up, stepping toward her, "I definitely feel like I'm losing here."

Claudia's eyes widened, and panic

started to creep in. She opened her mouth to protest, but before she could say another word, Claire spun on her heel, not bothering to look at Claudia as she headed toward the door. "Be smart next time, Claudia,” she called over her shoulder, waving goodbye dismissively.