New beginning: Billionaire love story

description, entertaining rich folks." His voice was low, filled with sarcasm as if he was talking more to himself than anyone else.

Matthew leaned back against the wall, half-listening to the small crowd of rich guests laughing and chatting around him. His eyes scanned the room, and he let out a quiet sigh. This was not what he signed up for. He muttered under his breath, "Not exactly in the job Sandra, standing next to him, caught his words and smirked. "I heard that."

He sidled up to her and leaned in. "So, when do I get to hush these people away? Please tell me soon," he asked, voice low but dripping with sarcasm.

Sandra smiled at the guest who passed by her.

"It's your choice. You're the one in charge here."

Matthew grinned, his mischievous side kicking in. "Oh, then it's over," he said with a wink, turning toward the crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen," he called out, clapping his hands loudly to grab attention. "Thank you for your time, but our lovely host has some work to attend to. And by that, I mean she's locked in her office, working her magic."

A few of the guests chuckled, but most groaned good-naturedly, knowing it was time to wrap up. Matthew was about to make a smooth exit, satisfied with his performance when he spotted two familiar-and unwelcome-faces approaching.

Frank Potter and Robert Robertson.

Matthew's smile faded instantly, his face turning cold as he crossed his arms. "What do you want, Frank?" he asked, voice sharper than before.

Frank, ever the slimy businessman, smiled widely, but Matthew wasn't fooled by the friendliness. "Just wanted to pass along a little message for Claire. Tell her that Venus is going to outperform Metacortex. By a mile."

Matthew couldn't help but smirk, finding the comment amusing. "Oh, you mean to steal someone's idea and call it your own?" His words were slow, and mocking, and they hit a nerve.

Frank's smile faltered, his eyes narrowing. "You know, Matthew," Frank said, his voice low, "you're just Claire's helper. When she finds someone more useful, she'll throw you away like yesterday's news."

Matthew rolled his eyes, completely unfazed. "Unlike Robert Robertson here," he motioned to Robert, who stood awkwardly by Frank's side, "Claire will keep me around. I'm her right-hand man, Frank. Always have been, always will be." He flashed a cocky grin before turning on his heel. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a real job to do."

Leaving Frank fuming, Matthew strolled out of the room and headed straight for Metacortex.

Claire sat at her desk, her fingers drumming lightly on the wood as she watched the Q&A session from her press release earlier in the day. "Jeez, they were quick to upload this," she muttered, half-impressed, half-annoyed. On her second monitor, she scanned the latest news articles. Every outlet was buzzing with positive reviews about the robotic demonstration, praising Claire's vision and the company's innovation.

But, as always, people were more interested in the drama.

Scrolling down the comments, Claire's eyes landed on a wild theory about the press conference: "That whole thing at the end was a skit! They staged it to go viral!" one commenter had written, their post gaining traction. Claire sighed, lost for words. People will believe anything, she thought.

Just then, his phone buzzed again. Alexander Harris, her business partner, was on the line with her secretary. "Any updates on the woman?" he asked, his voice casual, but Claire knew better. He was digging, and that always made her itch.

She was dying to figure out who this mysterious woman was on her own, but she couldn't let Alexander know that. She needed to keep her cards close. Adrian, of course, knew her skills, but Alexander? He had no clue. She preferred it that way. As she continued to scroll through her emails and articles, most of the news about the woman had dried up, and Claire found herself getting bored.

Is it worth it to dig into this, or let it go? she thought, biting her lip in contemplation.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of her office door creaking open. She looked up to see Matthew striding in, looking as smug as ever.

"How's the situation out there?" Claire asked, not looking up from her screens.

"Oh, you know, just me, your loyal sidekick, sending the rich folks home," Matthew replied with a wink as he sank into the chair across from her.

Claire finally glanced up, raising an eyebrow. "Sidekick? Is that what you're calling yourself now?"

"Hey, it's better than 'helper."" He leaned back, crossing his arms behind his head. "Frank Potter and his little pet, Robert, decided to stop by with a lovely message for you."

Claire groaned, setting her phone down. "Let me guess. Venus is going to dominate Metacortex, right?"

"Bingo." Matthew clicked his tongue. "I told them to go work on their 'idea-stealing' skills instead."

A small smile tugged at the corner of Claire's lips. "They really think they're going to outdo us, don't they?"

"Oh, Frank's got confidence for days, but I'm pretty sure it's all an act," Matthew said, leaning forward. "The dude tried to get in my head, and said you'd ditch me for someone more useful." Claire laughed, a sound that caught even her by surprise. "Useful? You?" she teased, her smile widening. "I keep you around for your charm, not your brains."

"Ouch. But noted," Matthew said, clutching his chest dramatically as if wounded.

Alexander was pacing back and forth, phone glued to his ear, his expression getting darker by the second. His voice suddenly rose, sharp and angry, "Are you kidding me?!"

The shout made both Claire and Matthew, who were in a conversation, whip their heads toward him.

Alexander stood in the corner, one hand gripping his phone while the other was resting on his hip. He was clearly irritated, and whatever was going on in that phone call wasn't pleasant. He hung up with a huff, tossing his phone onto the nearby table a little harder than necessary. Both hands now on his hips, he stood there fuming.

Claire raised an eyebrow, unable to stop herself from asking, "What happened?"

Alexander ran a hand through his hair, looking like he was trying to keep from shouting again. "It's Claudia Wright," he practically spat the name like it left a bad taste in his mouth.

Claire blinked at him, waiting for more explanation. When none came, she tilted her head. "And who's that supposed to be?" she asked, her tone curious but also impatient. "You're gonna have to give me more than that."

Alexander sighed, clearly frustrated,

but he relented. "Claudia Wright," he repeated, this time slower like it would make more sense. "She's the daughter of Jason Wright. Younoveldrama

know

Jason Wright, the guy who owns Solstice Vineyard? My company's been working with them for years. It's a big deal."

Claire frowned, not quite seeing the connection. "Okay... and?" She made a circling motion with her hand. "What does that have to do with her ruining my press release earlier?" She wasn't about to let him dodge the question. They'd worked way too hard to have everything derailed now.

Alexander's frown deepened as he crossed his arms. "I don't know why she'd pull a stunt like this, but something's up. I'm going to meet her in person and figure out what's going on. Something doesn't feel right."

Claire rolled her eyes, her frustration

bubbling up. "Great, so we've got some mystery drama happening. Fantastic she muttered under he breath, throwing her hands up.

"Just take care of it, okay? ne

I don't have time for this. My team has been working day and night on this robot, I can't let this ruin our

partnership, Harris."