Called Off the Wedding, Left Him Bankrupt novel Chapter 169

When Dominic emerged from the inner room, his gaze instinctively drifted toward the folding screen.

He didn't see Cynthia's busy figure bustling about, which gave him pause. After a moment, he strode over to take a closer look.

There she was—fast asleep, slumped over the coffee table, her head tilted to one side. Beneath her cheek lay a stack of neatly compiled notes, her elegant handwriting as graceful as she was.

Dominic stepped forward, stopping across from her and lowering himself onto the sofa. He let his eyes rest on her sleeping face.

Her eyes were closed, but her brow was furrowed tightly, clear evidence that her sleep was anything but restful.

She'd been through too many troubles lately, he thought. Even in sleep, she couldn't fully relax.

Dominic finally looked away, glancing at the mountain of documents piled on the table.

Although Cynthia had already reviewed part of the stack earlier that morning, more than half remained untouched.

Holloway Enterprises had long planned to expand into Cloudcrest City, and countless meetings had been held about it.

If he remembered correctly, there was someone whose job it was to organize all the meeting materials.

Cynthia only needed to read the executive summaries to quickly grasp the company's projects and plans for Cloudcrest City.

Dominic absentmindedly reached for a file and began flipping through it, his brows knitting in frustration as he scanned the pages.

Just then, Cynthia's alarm went off.

She'd set it as a reminder for Juliet's scheduled checkup at the hospital.

Reacting on autopilot, she jerked awake, grabbed her phone, and hurried to silence the alarm, casting a worried glance toward the inner room to see if anyone had been disturbed.

Relieved that no one emerged, she exhaled quietly and was about to send Juliet a message when she felt someone watching her.

Lifting her eyes from her phone, she spotted Dominic sitting across from her, reviewing documents on the sofa.

His expression was severe, tinged with impatience—a storm clearly brewing.

"Mr. Holloway, you're up," she said, anxiously. "Did I wake you?"

Staring at his harsh, commanding expression, Cynthia lost her nerve. The words died in her throat.

"It's nothing," she muttered. "I'll get back to work."

He looked genuinely intimidating when he was angry.

No wonder Jocelyn was afraid of him.

After a few previous encounters, Cynthia knew Dominic suffered from terrible morning moods, but she hadn't realized just how bad they could get.

She'd probably disturbed his nap at lunchtime, and if she made any more requests now, she'd only be pouring gasoline on the fire.

He'd already torn into someone else—she didn't want to be next.

Quietly, Cynthia slunk back to her temporary desk, burying herself in paperwork and doing her best to fade into the background.

Dominic glanced over at her, noticing how cautious and subdued she'd become. His frown deepened.