He'd been holding that deferential posture the entire time, but I caught the calculation in his eyes the moment it flickered.
He thought handing over control of the project would be enough to shut me up?
"You seem very sincere."
I kept my tone light, almost indifferent.
Bruno's expression brightened instantly.
He thought I was letting him off the hook. He bowed his head eagerly. "Yes, Agatha, I truly realize how wrong I was. This authorization letter represents my commitment to you!"
Our parents nodded approvingly from the side of the table.
They'd all been taken in by the performance Bruno was putting on.
"Fine. I'll give you one more chance."
I let the words fall slowly.
Bruno looked overjoyed. Both sets of parents exhaled in visible relief.
What none of them realized was that I wasn't just speaking to Bruno.
I was speaking to all of them.
"Alright, alright, let's put the past behind us."
"To a smooth partnership between our two families!" My father raised his glass.
Everyone broke into smiles, and the atmosphere warmed again.
After dinner, Bruno walked me to the entrance.
"Agatha, let me drive you home."
He reached for my hand as he spoke.
I stepped aside.
His hand froze in midair. His expression went rigid.
"Agatha, what's that supposed to mean?"
"I already let Genevieve go. I handed over the project. What more do you want from me?"
A flash of anger crossed his face.
But I just looked at him calmly, the way someone might look at trash on the sidewalk.
"Bruno, something that's been dirtied doesn't come clean just because you rinse it off."
"Especially not a person's heart."
He stared at me in disbelief, the corner of his mouth twitching.
I didn't bother acknowledging it. I simply told him, my voice flat: "Don't forget, this is the first chance I'm giving you. Don't disappoint me."
Then I turned and walked away.
Bruno stayed rooted to the spot.
A shadow had settled over his face, dark and heavy.
Don't rush. This is only the beginning.
Securing initial approval authority over the project meant that Henson Group had to follow my directives on it without question.
And the first thing I did was freeze one of Bruno's critical payments.
The next morning, his call came in, his voice tight with urgency. "Agatha, the project's startup funds got sent back? This is going to throw off the entire timeline!"
I put him on speaker, unhurried, studying the freshly printed photographs spread across my desk.
"The receiving party's credentials raised red flags. To mitigate risk, I had Finance run a secondary review."
My tone didn't waver.
"What? That vendor has worked with us for years—"
"Didn't you say you were putting me in charge?"
One sentence, and Bruno went silent.
After a long pause, he managed: "But... but—"
"No buts. Protocol is protocol."
I hung up.
I looked down at the photographs and let out a cold laugh.
My private investigator had sent them over just that morning. Genevieve, the woman who had supposedly been fired, was lounging inside that luxury penthouse.
The watch on her wrist had been captured in perfect clarity.
And Bruno's car was parked right below the building.
Begging me to release project funds with one hand, keeping his little songbird comfortable with the other.
Bruno, you really are something.
Over the following week, I turned a blind eye to everything. The stalled partnership issues. Bruno's secret visits to Genevieve behind my back.
All of it.
When Bruno played the devoted fiance, I responded with polite indifference and nothing more.
Then, finally, Friday evening arrived.
